Hard to Find
by dustytiger
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there. Naturally Tony/Ziva. Enjoy!
1. Prologue

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel. Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: "Hard to Find" is a song title from a Canadian artist called Katie Rox and the song made me think of them, so it stuck. I hate thinking of titles so I use song names. A little plot bunny about Ziva/Tony and baby hit me after Ziva's farewell, it pushed aside another fic I'd been working on. Then the idea of starting at the end and working back came to mind and this fic was born.

It's going to be twenty parts total (including this prologue and an epilogue). I promise this part will make more sense as times goes on. If you don't know me you need to know that I can be evil in the places I stop, but my fic is more or less done when I start to post it so it doesn't get abandoned and I updat daily!

* * *

"Daddy when do I getta see my baby brother?" Michaela DiNozzo asked her father.

"We're going now," Anthony DiNozzo assured his now three year old daughter. "When we get to the hospital you need to be gentle if you want to hug Mommy, and you need to listen to us when you get to hold the baby."

"Okay Daddy."

Michaela Jane DiNozzo looked just like her mother. She had long brown hair, which Tony had managed to get into braids, her favourite way to have her hair done lately. She was wearing a red dress with pink tights, and was already pulling her running shoes on, then she put a cowboy hat on her head. DiNozzo smiled at his daughter, he loved that she always dressed the way she liked and hoped she would always be so unique. He took her hand and went to the extended cab truck he drove. Michaela climbed in and sat down on her booster seat. He handed her the seat belt and listened for it to click before going over to the driver's side and started the car.

They drove to the hospital and he went right up to Ziva David's room. He smiled at her the moment he saw her. Even after hours of labour she was beautiful to him. She looked up and smiled back at him as she nursed their newborn son. Glad to see her daughter was also there, liking that for the moment she had her family close. She knew she would need to treasure this moment because their family would start showing up any moment.

"Momma, what're you doing?" asked Michaela.

"This is how babies eat," Ziva told her daughter. "That's how you ate when you were a baby. When he's full and he burps, Daddy will help you so you can hold him."

"Okay Mommy. He's really little!"

Ziva laughed. "You were even smaller when you were born."

"Really wow. I don't 'member being that little. Did 'ya find his name?"

"We did, sweetheart, we decided to name him Elijah James Anthony DiNozzo."

"Eh- li… A-li… El- i… Momma could I call him EJ?"

The little girl's parents looked at each other and nodded. The shortened name definitely had a bit of history, but they were willing to overlook it. They both knew that nickname would be easier for them to hear on a daily basis then "Eli" which was one of the main reasons they had had so much trouble picking a name. They wanted their son's name to mean something like their daughter's but they had agreed a long time ago they would not bring Anthony DiNozzo the third into the world.

Ziva nodded. "I think that's a very good nickname for him, don't you, Tony?"

DiNozzo nodded. "I think so too, I hope you like it too, son cause I have a feeling it's going to stick."

Ziva moved to burp the baby. Michaela heard him burp. "Excuse EJ," she whispered making her parents laugh.

"All right Michaela why don't you sit down and Daddy will help you hold Elijah."

"Yea!" she exclaimed.

Michaela sat down on the chair and Tony took the newborn, and put him carefully in his daughter's arms. Ziva had DiNozzo's phone and snapped a few pictures not wanting to ever forget this moment. There was a time where she wasn't sure she would ever be able to have this. Now her family was perfect and she couldn't be happier. She was determined not to let her hormones get the better of her as she watched her family interact.

"You need to be careful with his head, Princess," he warned her.

"Okay Daddy."

There was a soft knock at the door and a moment later Abby Scuito was standing there. She had a huge smile on her face and a gift bag in her hands. She gave Ziva a picture frame with the word "family" printed on it, but no picture in it yet. She also had a kid's microscope set for Michaela and a stuffed frog toy the new baby.

"Auntie Abby!" Michaela exclaimed. "Look-it my baby brother, EJ!"

Abby smiled. "He looks just like his dad. There's stuff in the bag for both of you when you have your hands free kiddo. EJ?"

"Elijah-James," Ziva told her.

"Sweet McGee owes me a cleaning of my lab. He was sure that while Tony would convince you the world needed another Anthony DiNozzo while you were drugged up."

Ziva laughed. "We agreed when we chose Michaela's name that we would not do that, although I was not sure that it would even happen."

Abby laughed. "I always thought you'd have a mini Ziva and a mini Tony. Huh, and it looks like that's how it's gonna be this little guy looks just like his daddy." She then hugged her friend. "Of course I kinda thought you'd still work with us when it happened."

Ziva shrugged. "I like this life."

"Momma! EJ's getting too heavy," Michaela whined.

"I will gladly take him off your hands," Abby assured her gently picking up the baby.

No sooner did Abby take the baby, then the door opened again, revealing Leroy Jethro Gibbs standing there. He had a stuffed toy, a book and a bouquet of flowers. He gave the flowers to Ziva who nodded to silently thank him. He then put the small blue stuffed bear in EJ's bassinette, and finally gave the book, which was about being a big sister to Michaela.

"Thank you Grampa Gibbs!" she exclaimed, jumping up and hugging him. "EJ says thank you too! I bet his bear'll be like mine!"

Gibbs just smiled and hugged the little girl. He'd tried to get her to call him Uncle like she did with everyone else but she insisted that he was Grampa Gibbs and he stopped trying to fight it after a while. He did love her like a grandparent and he assumed she had picked up on that, although he had a feeling Abby might have egged it on, but he couldn't be mad at her.

"I'd like that Michaela," Gibbs told her, kissing her forehead.

"Can you please read me my new book?" she asked.

She knew he couldn't say no to her. He picked her up then put her on his lap after he sat on the chair she'd been on, and softly began to read to her. Part way through the book he noticed she'd fallen asleep. He smiled and closed the book, keeping an arm around the little girl just in case she moved in her sleep.

"I guess I'll have to wait to hold, did she call him EJ?" Gibbs said.

"Yes, she did," Ziva replied. "Short for Elijah James."

"Good, I was hoping there wouldn't be a third Anthony DiNozzo."

Tony laughed. "No way Boss, there's enough with two of us."

Gibbs smiled. "You're right DiNozzo."

The door opened again. "It's nice of you to join us McTardy."

"It's a good thing Michaela is sleeping," Timothy McGee told DiNozzo when he noticed her asleep in Gibbs' lap. "You know how she gets when you do that. It took me longer than I thought to find something for them both."

He then showed them what he'd bought. For Michaela he had a fairly simple puzzle, and for EJ he'd bought a shirt which read "future NCIS agent" as well as a tiny NCIS cap, which made everyone chuckle.

"I think we know what Elijah is going to be wearing when we bring him home, thank you McGee," Ziva told him with a smile. "Where did you find those?"

"I had them made, it's amazing what you can find online. Finding a puzzle for Michaela was another story."

Ziva couldn't help but laugh, and was glad that everyone had brought something for Michaela as well. Anthony DiNozzo Senior had been texting his son assuring him that he was on his way, but his flight had been delayed. Since their first child had been born they two DiNozzos had had a much better relationship. There was something comforting to Ziva about having just the parts of her work family she had seen the most. She knew that Donald "Ducky" Mallard and Jimmy Palmer would also show up meet the baby, but for the moment she was happy.

Ziva David had her boy and girl like she had wished for all those years ago in Israel; which she hadn't even known she still wanted until the day she had taken a home pregnancy test that resulted in her discovering not only that she was pregnant, but just how deeply she cared for Tony DiNozzo and accepted the fact that all of her soul searching in her native land would lead her back to America where she could be happy to become a wife and mother.

End Prologue

Notes: Well that was that! I hope you liked it. This just felt like a good place to start it, and I hope you can agree. Let me know what you think! It's been way too long since I posted anything.


	2. Part 1

Title: Hard to Find

Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)

Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.

Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.

Notes: In this part Ziva comes home with news for DiNozzo! Thank you for the support so far it means a lot. I'm off work for another week so keep the reviews coming to entertain me.

Tony DiNozzo looked up when he heard the bing of the elevator. When the doors opened he was shocked by who he saw. He certainly was not expecting to see who he saw standing there. He was thrilled to see her, even though she now wore a visitor's badge, still, somehow, it almost felt like old times. After four months of soul searching Ziva David was back; home where she belonged. Judging by the shape of her belly she had returned with news for him. He couldn't help but think how beautiful she was, she was truly glowing. Happiness seemed to radiate off of her, and he hoped he would be part of continuing that.

"Tony," she whispered, going to his desk, ignoring the other two shocked agents she knew, and a face she had never seen before which she had to ignore although she was at what used to be her desk.

She had stopped living that life, it was what she wanted; she needed to remind herself of that. She knew that after all those months they would have moved forward, and that meant that the team would find a third member. She touched her stomach, and remembered why she was there. She didn't need her old job back, she only needed to talk to DiNozzo, preferably privately.

"I guess we need to talk," Tony muttered, his eyes on her expanding belly.

She nodded and the two of them returned to the elevator. They were hardly inside for a moment when she hit the button to stop it. Both of them smiled slightly wondering how often this elevator had been stopped as a ruse for a private talk. They both also flashed back for a moment to the time they'd spent stuck in that same space. No sooner had the power halted than she had her lips on his in a fierce embrace. His hands went straight to her belly. She smiled and pulled away from him.

"She is yours, Tony," she assured him.

"I know," he replied. "She? We're having a girl?"

"The doctors have not confirmed it, but I know."

"Hopefully she'll be as beautiful as her mom."

She blushed. "Tony," she warned.

"All right, all right," he laughed. "I'll give you that. It sounded like the worst line in a worse romantic comedy." He kissed her softly. "I missed you."

"And I, you," she assured him. "I was not sure you would want to do this."

"I would've liked it if we'd had more time to explore our relationship alone, since it's all so new, but I know I want this. I'm happy Ziva. I never knew I wanted this until I saw you, and now I can't think about anything else. I haven't even had a scare since I was a teenager, now this. As Abby would say it must be meant to be."

She laughed, resting her head on his. "You really think so?"

"I do, yes. I want this. I'm actually excited."

"I am happy. Did you tell them about Israel?"

He shook his head, no. "I didn't think it was any of their business."

She nodded. "Is this a sign that you, Anthony DiNozzo Junior, are growing up?"

"Maybe," he laughed nervously and scratched his head. "If we spend much more time in here there are going to be rumours going around about what we did in here."

"I do not care."

He laughed for a moment before she kissed him again. He enjoyed the embrace for a long moment before hitting the button again, to re-start the elevator. He hit another button, which brought them down to Abby's lab. As they went toward the lab they could hear music playing, and when they got to the door they noticed she was also dancing.

"Abs!" exclaimed Tony, to get her attention.

"I haven't got anything yet Tony," she defended.

"I know, but I have a surprise for you."

She spun around expecting to see a Caf Pow in his hand, instead she was thrilled to see Ziva standing next to Tony. He had his hand on her hip and she didn't seem to mind. He wasn't able to hold her long before Abby hugged Ziva tightly, Ziva was glad to be a part of Abby's very fierce hugs again, there was a time she thought she would never get one of those hugs again.

"Welcome home!" Abby exclaimed, only then did she notice her belly. "Ziva! I'm so happy for you!"

Abby hugged her again, thrilled for her friend. She then moved over to Tony and lightly hit him behind the head similar to what Gibbs would do, but not nearly as hard. She couldn't believe that Tony had been able to keep this from her. She wasn't sure he knew about the baby, but she knew he knew exactly how that baby was made, and she was shocked she had no idea about it.

"Hey what was that for?" DiNozzo asked.

"For not telling you about Ziva," she replied.

"I just found out myself."

"Not that! You tell me about everything that happens when it comes to women, even when I don't want to know, which is most of the time, how could you not tell me that you and Ziva finally realised you loved each other while you were in Israel?"

He shrugged. "I didn't want to tell anyone, Abs. It was personal."

"Aw, Tony! You're in love!"

His cheeks turned red. "Maybe."

"Omg! Ziva tell me you love him too!" Ziva just looked away, a very slight blush on her cheeks. "Legit? Oh I'm so happy for you two!"

She pulled them both into a huge hug, and neither of them minded at all. This felt like what it was supposed to feel like. She was thrilled for her friends and couldn't wait to see where their relationship went. A moment later she heard the bing of the elevator and grinned seeing McGee and Gibbs appear in her office.

"Ziva and Tony are having a baby!" Abby exclaimed.

"So you're staying?" McGee asked.

"I am," Ziva assured them both.

"Tony, is this why you never said anything about Israel when you came back?"

DiNozzo shrugged. "I don't understand why everyone is making such a big deal about that."

"It's a big deal because I know more about your sex life than I care to, but you didn't even tell me thing about Ziva."

"I guess I cannot pretend that Tony does not care about me anymore, can I?" asked Ziva.

"You can't Ziver," Gibbs said, in his own way telling them both that he approved of what ever happened next and was happy for the couple.

He knew that Ziva was not coming back to be a part of the team, and although he would miss her being an enforcer on his team, he knew that she now wanted something different. She looked at Gibbs and they nodded at one another, glad that words didn't need to be exchanged in order for them to communicate what they needed to.

"DiNozzo, take the rest of the day off," Gibbs told him.

"You sure, Boss?"

"We got things here. Go, before I change my mind."

He nodded, and before anyone could say anything, he put his hand on the small of Ziva's back and the two of them left together. Both McGee and Abby's jaws were on the floor. They never thought Gibbs would do anything like that. They looked at each other quizzically.

"Get back to work," Gibbs stated, neither of them needed to hear anything more, they began to work on the case knowing they'd be down a man for good reason, and they could handle it.

Notes: So heads up I hate the term "baby bump" so I shall not be used in this fic. Let me know what you think. PS not really giving any detail to the Ziva replacement just that she exists. Soooo happy to have a new fic!


	3. Part 2

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: In this part Tony and Ziva head home, and a good idea ensues. Thank you for the support everyone. Keep the happies coming, reviews are good for the soul.

* * *

Ziva and Tony walked into his apartment. He fed his goldfish Kate and smiled at Ziva who went to put her bag in the bedroom. She was surprised when she saw there was a queen sized bed, instead of the single bed that had been there the last time she had stayed.

"I told you I made room for you," Tony told her, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close, taking a deep breath taking in the smell of oranges and apples that always seemed to cling to her.

She smiled at him. "You did."

"I guess we'll need to find a new place soon. Somewhere that is ours, and enough space for the baby and maybe a little more."

She smiled. "We will when the time is right. Tony, you know why I came back."

He nodded moving to face her. "I think so."

"You said I could bag groceries if that's what I wanted." She ran her hands along his cheeks. "I want to be a mom, just a mom."

"We can make that happen for you." He then placed his hands on her belly. "When will I be able to feel her move?"

"Soon," she assured him.

"I'm sorry I missed the beginning of this."

"Do not be sorry. That was my choice. It was what I needed."

"I don't understand."

"When I was younger I became pregnant once. I was so excited I thought that the man I was dating would be happy too. I believed we would get married and I could stay away from my father's life, but he was not excited like I was. He got mad and told me he never wanted to see me again." She looked at the floor, holding back tears. "The stress of it caused me to lose the baby. I wanted to wait to tell you until she was strong enough to fight if you did not want this."

He wiped her tears away with his thumbs. "Oh, Ziva, I'm so sorry. Did you think I would turn you away?"

"Not in my heart, but I could not risk losing another baby. It was the most painful thing I ever lived through. I needed to be at this point so I could travel home and tell you about her with a lot less risk."

"I understand now," he assured her capturing her lips.

She relaxed into the embrace, wrapping her arms around him, pulling him closer. He smiled as he kissed her, loving the feeling of her lips on his again. He missed her while she was in Israel and he knew she understood that. Having her home where she belonged felt like a dream come true. He never thought he would want to be a parent before, but seeing her made him realise he might be missing something. He pulled away a few long moments later.

"I – I love you Ziva," he told her.

"And I love you Tony," she whispered.

He kissed her again and they fell onto the bed together. His hands were all over her. It had been too long since he had been with this woman, and he needed her to know that he needed that. He was still amazed she was really letting him do this. Just like when they were in Israel a part of him was sure he would wake up at any moment to discover it was a dream.

"Tony," she whispered. "You are a million miles away."

He shook his head. "I guess I still think this isn't real."

"I am here Tony, and I am not going anywhere."

He ran his fingers through her hair. "How do I know?"

"Because of this," she whispered, taking his hand and placing it on her belly. "I do not want this baby to wonder who her father is. I want her to know you. I want to watch you melt when you see her for the first. I want – I want to stop hiding."

He took her hand, and kissed it softly. "How do I know you won't run away again?"

She shook her head. "I do not know how to make you see that." She then swallowed and took a deep breath. "You could marry me?"

"What? Ziva, that's insane."

"No it is not. Hear me out. I never thought I would have a child without being married. Why can we not elope?"

"Because it's crazy, we've barely had a relationship, we've been close friends but being more is so new to us both. How are we ready for that?"

"Tell me you do not love me."

"I can't, you know that. I've loved you for a long time."

"As have I, tell me you do not see us together in the future."

"You're having my baby of course I want to be a part of your life for a long time to come."

"So how are we not ready to be married?"

He ran his thumbs along her cheeks. "Because you deserve a huge ceremony at the place of your dreams wearing a big white dress," he told her.

"I cannot do that without my family."

"Ziva," he sighed.

"It is true Tony. In my faith a woman walks down the aisle with both her parents, I do not have either. And while I know Gibbs would step in it is not the same, and it is not what I want. When I was very young I wanted to get married at the synagogue my parents were married at, but it has been bombed. I do not have either of my parents, or my siblings. I have a surrogate family from NCIS but I do not want something big anymore. I want it to be private just like our relationship has been. I do not care how I am married so long as it is to you."

"Are you sure?"

She nodded, tears in her eyes. "I am sure, it is not what I dreamed and nothing can be. With you nothing is as I expected it to be yet that makes me happy."

"As long as you're sure, if it'll make you happy we can elope. All I've ever thought of the few times marriage has popped into my head is making the woman who I finally find happy with what we choose."

"It will make me happy. I want to marry you as soon as possible."

"Give me a sec," he told her.

He stood up, going into the other room for a moment. When he came back she was glad he had her Star of David necklace in his hands, but she could tell there was something more. He gave it back to her, having always known that she would come back for it, and he was glad he hadn't had to wait too long for that. She put it back on and they both smiled at each other. He kissed her softly, then ran his fingers through her hair.

"Now close your eyes," he told her.

She looked at him quizzically. "Tony?"

"Trust me."

She knew she trusted him like no one else and she closed her eyes. Her hand moved to the necklace and for the first time in a long time she felt whole again. When she'd given him her necklace she knew that she would come back for it, of course she didn't think it would be so soon. The moment she had found out about the baby she knew she would have to return and tell him. She then felt something slip onto her finger, surprised that it seemed to fit.

"You can open 'em," he whispered in her ear.

She shivered liking having him so close to her. When she opened her eyes a moment later she was shocked by what she saw, a beautiful white gold ring was on her left ring finger. It had a simple sapphire instead of a diamond set in it, and she loved it. She wondered how he had found her something so perfect.

"It was my mother's, I can't imagine anyone else wearing it," he told her as if he'd read her mind. "I couldn't find a place for us to be married without having that on your finger."

"I love it," she then pulled him toward her in in a kiss.

They both knew they would find a way to elope but first they needed to experience what they hadn't in four long months. Their hands took on lives of their own, exploring the other's body, knowing they didn't want anyone else. Ziva was glad to have the space the new queen sized bed he'd gotten since she was last there; goose bumps were already forming all over her body as she worked on his belt buckle. She knew what this man could do for her, and she was glad to know she would never have to go without it again.

Notes: I feel like Ziva is a strong enough woman to not sit around and wait for a man to propose hehe… let me know what you think. Heartz.


	4. Part 3

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: Eloping is fun! I didn't want to the Vegas thing it didn't suit them so bear with this please. I hope you are still enjoying this, let me know. A huge thanks to everyone who has reviewed, alerted of faved this fic it means a lot.

* * *

DiNozzo pulled up to a small chapel he had found not far from home. He didn't want to have to explain going to Las Vegas with her to anyone. He knew they would have enough questions to answer when they invited the team and his father to join them to announce not their engagement but their marriage. He was excited about this, but he was still wrapping his head around the fact she was back. He took her hand and she smiled at him reassuringly.

"Ziva, you're sure about this?" DiNozzo asked.

"I am, yes, Tony. This is what I want," she assured him. "Maybe you are the one who is getting cold fool."

"It's feet," he laughed, he'd missed that when she was gone, and realised at that moment it was one of the many things he loved about her. "I'm not, I want this, I want you, and the baby. I'm just surprised it all happened so quickly. You haven't been home for a week and here we are."

"I know it is quick, but my mother taught me you do not have a baby if you are not married."

"I don't want the only reason we get married to be that you're pregnant."

She kissed his cheek softly. "I would want to marry you if I was not pregnant Tony. We may not have had to do it so quickly but I would still want it, and I would still want to do it somewhere small because I do not have my family with me. This feels like the right choice, it took us too long to get here and now that we have shared our real feelings I do not want to let it go, again."

He ran his hand along her cheek, and sighed softly. "Then why didn't you just come home with me when I asked?"

"I was not ready yet. There was something I needed to find in Israel."

"Did you find it?"

"Yes, I did. I discovered you are a large part of what makes me happy. You have also helped me accomplish some of my childhood dreams I did not know I wanted. The baby simply proved to me that I needed to come home to you and how much I want to be your wife."

"How?" he asked.

"We were careful, you have said yourself you have not even had a pregnancy scare in the past, and I do not even want to think about how many women you have been with. Not to sound like Abby, but this baby was meant to be. I found out about her while I was soul searching, looking for answers about where my future should bring you, and she brought me home to you. This is my home now. I worked very hard for my American citizenship. I can live with my past but I want to look forward from now on, with you, and as a mother to this child. I did not know I wanted that until I took the pregnancy test and it was positive."

He nodded then kissed her softly as he pulled her to him. She happily wrapped her arms around her and deepened the kiss. They both enjoyed the embrace for a long moment. He then laid his forehead on hers and smiled at her.

"I never thought I would want to get married, it's something I've run from for a long time," he told her

"I know, you do want this, today?" she asked him.

"I do I just thought when it happened at least Gibbs, McGee and Abby would know about it and be a part of it."

"Tony I do not want pictures of me in a white dress and a noticeable bulge in my belly! All I want is for us to be married."

He sighed, and ran his fingers through her hair. "Are you really sure this is all you need, Ziva?"

"It is Tony I have wanted this from the moment I saw the result of the test, nothing special just the two of us promising to stay together through everything."

He kissed her softly. "All right, as long as you're sure this is how you want this."

"I am sure."

They got out of the car and went inside. The place was tasteful, and clean. There was a young woman who was sitting at a desk chewing gum. They both wondered how often people went in the old looking building. Taking a deep breath Ziva took Tony's hand, squeezing it to assure him that this would be fine. She needed this done without anyone trying to question them. She held a garment bag in her hands as they went inside.

"Can I help you?" the young woman asked.

It took DiNozzo a moment to realise he wasn't there on a case and didn't need to pull out his identification. "We were wondering how this works."

"All right, it's pretty easy, there's a fee for your marriage licence if you don't have one, and then a fee for the ceremony, goes up depending on what you want. Though, I'm guessing for you two just something simple."

"Yeah, we don't want anything too elaborate we just want to get married today."

"All right we can do that, no problem. Would you like a tape of the ceremony since you haven't got anyone with you?"

"Yes, that would be good," Ziva replied.

"I need you to fill this out, and what are your names?"

"I'm Tony DiNozzo," replied DiNozzo.

"And I'm Ziva David," Ziva told her.

"Excellent I hope you like your ceremony. I assume you'd like to change, Ziva?"

"Yes I would, thank you."

"Follow me."

Ziva went with the young woman, and a man appeared to greet DiNozzo. He smiled and gave the man the paper work, shaking his hand. He seemed like a normal guy, which DiNozzo was relieved about. He still couldn't believe this was actually happening, and everyone was going to find out when it was done, and watch it on a video later. He followed the officiate into the small room, which had a few seats. It was simple like everything else there. The woman from the desk appeared in the doorway, gave a thumbs up then entered the room with a camera.

Music started to play and Ziva appeared in the door way wearing a simple ivory lace gown. It had been her mother's so it covered everything, but DiNozzo still thought she looked amazing. He hadn't expected her to actually wear a wedding gown. The waist line made the small belly she was sporting seem to disappear and DiNozzo had to remind himself that she was in fact pregnant. He smiled at her as she walked with purpose toward him.

The officiate preformed a very generic ceremony, then the young receptionist witnessed their marriage licence. She handed them the tape and they were married. They had picked out simple wedding bands for each other on the way to the small chapel, and they were looking forward to tell their friends, before they saw any of them who would without a doubt see the rings on their fingers.

They left the chapel, his hand on the small of her back. She smiled at him, and was surprised when he opened the door for her. He kissed her softly, putting is hand on her belly as he pulled away. She smiled at him and ran her fingers along his cheek. He kissed her again before she sat down in the passenger's seat. He went around to the driver's side and sat down, taking her hand. She smiled at him as they drove away.

"I can't wait to get you out of that dress, you look amazing Ziva," he told her.

She smiled. "I am glad you like it. It was my mother's I was not even sure it would fit."

"Why didn't you try it on at home?"

"Because your bathroom does not have a lock on it, and I did not want you to see me in it before. It might have been a traditional wedding but it would still be bad luck."

"A guy surprises you in the shower once, and suddenly he can't be trusted."

"You are lucky I did not break your nose!"

"I thought your ninja days were behind you."

"I am trying but I still have reflexes."

He smiled at her. "Just keep in mind I can't help myself around you."

She laughed. "If you say so Tony."

They soon pulled onto their block. They were both happy as he pulled into his parking spot. They went up to his apartment, and a moment later his lips were all over hers, and his hands were all over the dress. She was glad she had found it, and kept it safe through everything that had happened. There was a time she thought she would never wear it, but it had been perfect. She shivered as he unzipped the dress, then kissed him again as it pooled at her feet. He lifted her easily into his arms and brought her to the bedroom.

Notes: I know it was a little quick but I think it fits them. Next up how everyone reacts to the news.


	5. Part 4

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: Ziva and Tony celebrate their marriage with their friends! Thank you as always for the support. I kind of don't show as much of Ducky and Palmer mostly cause it's just more voices than I can keep track of honestly sorry.

* * *

Gibbs, McGee and Abby weren't sure why DiNozzo had invited them out that night. When they had arrived at the Italian restaurant they were escorted to a back area that seemed to be used for private parties, and then they really began to wonder what might be going on. They were even more surprised when Anthony DiNozzo Senior had been invited as well and knew something big must have happened. All of their minds were wondering what could be going on and why they were all there. They were not surprised to see DiNozzo walk into the room, his hand on Ziva's hip.

"It's about damn time," Senior joked with his son. "You sealed the deal."

"There's more to it than that, Dad," the Junior DiNozzo told his father.

"I can tell by Ziva's new figure. You look beautiful my dear," he told her kissing her cheek softly.

"Thank you Mister DiNozzo," she replied kissing his cheek as well.

"But we already knew that!" Abby exclaimed.

"The father is always the last to know," Seniror joked.

"So there's another reason," Abby pondered for a moment. "You're engaged?"

Ziva and DiNozzo looked at each other, and smiled. "A little more than that, Abs," DiNozzo told her squeezing Ziva's hand.

"Wait a minute, really?"

"You two?" asked Gibbs not needing to say anything more.

"Yeah," the couple replied, both of them grinning.

The two of them were fixated on each other for a moment, clearly happy to have told their friends in their own way. DiNozzo brushed a piece of hair behind Ziva's ear, and she smiled as she laid her head on his chest wanting to be close to him. The past few days had been a whirl-wind, and it was nice to finally be able to relax knowing the truth was out. They didn't have to hide if any of their friends when they tried to contact them, pretending DiNozzo had been sick. A moment later Abby had almost flown across the room and pulled them both into a hug. The two of them started to laugh, it had been a long time since they had gotten a reaction like that from Abby, and they were happy to make her so happy.

"I never thought I'd see the day, Tony," McGee commented, saying what everyone else was thinking. "Congratulations, both of you."

"You owe me fifty bucks," Abby told McGee, punching him playfully in the arm after she had hugged the couple. "I knew I should have bet something bigger! I'm so happy!"

"What am I missing?" asked the senior DiNozzo.

"These two sneaky little bums went and got married behind all of our backs!" Abby exclaimed. "So Tony getting the flu was just a ruse huh?"

"It was the only way we could keep it from you Abby," Tony told her.

"I never thought you'd elope, Junior, hell I never thought you'd get married. But you found yourself one hell of a woman, and I'm glad you didn't impregnate her and run."

"Thanks Dad, I think," DiNozzo told his father, with a shrug. "As much as we wanted you all there it made the most sense to just get it done our own way."

"I wouldn't expect anything else from you two," Gibbs assured them.

"But we wanted to have a small celebration with the people who matter most to us, so we're glad you were able to make it."

"Before we do that Junior you're going to have to tell me when you knocked the beautiful Miss David, now Missus DiNozzo, up."

They both looked at each other, and said. "In Israel."

"When the hell were you in Israel?"

The senior DiNozzo could not believe all he was learning so much about his son in just one night. He knew they'd never been close, but he was sure he would have heard about the progress in the relationship. He didn't see Ziva as the kind of woman who would get engaged and put and get married right after, but his closest friends were also surprised by the news of the marriage.

"About four months ago," Gibbs answered matter of fact as always.

"And Junior, you didn't feel the need to tell me you sealed that deal?"

"Tony didn't tell anyone," Abby assured the senior DiNozzo.

"What part of it was no one else's business does no one understand?" asked the Junior DiNozzo.

"The fact you've always made your love life everyone else's business Tony," Abby teased.

"Okay, fair enough, but this is different."

"Is it ever," laughed McGee.

DiNozzo didn't understand why everyone made such a big deal about him not having told anyone about what had happened while he had been in Israel. He knew in the past he had been open about his love life, but it had been a long while since he had really bragged about anything. He knew that Ziva was a much more private person, and he didn't want her to come back and have to deal with any rumours or whispers about them. He knew that it could jeopardize their new relationship and it had already been so strained he couldn't add the stress.

Abby hugged her friend again. "I get it Tony, and I'm so happy for you two."

"Thank you Abs," he told her.

She then moved to hug Ziva, who gladly hugged her friend. They then sat down at the table that DiNozzo had reserved. They were all happy to the be there to celebrate good news, there had been so much bad lately. A server came over to take their drink orders, as Ducky and Palmer joined them. They had had to stay a little later to clean up, but were happy to be joining their friends' celebration.

"Ziva my dear, your hand seems to be adorned with two new pieces of jewelry," said Ducky. "They are quite beautiful I did not know Anthony had such good taste in jewellery."

She smiled at him. "You are right Ducky, although one was his mother's."

"Congratulations to you both. Anthony I am glad you have finally taken the plunge. I wasn't expecting it to happen so quickly."

"Once we got in our heads, there was no stopping us," DiNozzo explained with a shrug. "You know how I can get."

"I do, my boy, there is nothing better than simply following one's heart. I wish you both all the happiness in the world."

"Thank you," Ziva said with a smile.

"I had no idea you two were so close," Palmer commented. "I guess you always acted hinky around each other but I wouldn't have guessed it was because of that."

"Nothing happened while we worked together," Ziva assured everyone.

"Gibbs would have killed me," DiNozzo added.

"Damn right," Gibbs agreed.

"Okay just nothing happen happened doesn't mean that nothing happened," Abby stated. "I mean if something didn't happen even if it wasn't you know, bow-chicka-wow-wow, you don't get married to someone after a few days over there, and a few more days here. It's a good thing that rule twelve isn't don't fall in love with a co-worker."

Gibbs shrugged. "Do I need to change it Abs?"

"Naw, it's good how it is. Falling in love is totally different from dating. Dating means it can end and screw up mojo, break up teams, which is bad and why it's a Gibbs rule. Falling love means you've found you sweet baboo and do what it takes to keep her, or him depending."

"True."

The server came back to take everyone's orders. They all began to order then relaxed into casual conversation about old relationships, and the like as they waited for their food. Ziva was quite happy to be curled up to DiNozzo, holding his hand and acting like any other woman who was in love around her friends, and they were glad to see that side of her. Anyone who saw them would be able to instantly tell the two were truly in love.

Notes: I hope you liked this part, please let me know. The next part Tony and Senior have a serious heart-to-heart. Let me know if you're still enjoying this.


	6. Part 5

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: Senior has a chat with his son. As always thank you for the support on this. I hope I do senior some justice.

* * *

Senior went in search of his son, needing to talk to him. As much as he was happy that his son had finally settled down and admitted his feelings for Ziva, he needed to talk to him. After all the woman who his son had married was pregnant and the father and son still had a strained relationship, but Senior knew he wanted to a part of his grandchild's life. He found son at the server's station, obviously trying to make sure that no one else was going to try to pay for the meal, and evening everyone was enjoying. Senior didn't have to say anything to his son, and the two men went outside to talk.

"Junior where did you get that ring?" the Senior DiNozzo asked.

"When Gran got sick she told me she'd put it in a safety deposit box, for me. Mom told her she wanted me to have it, to use it when I found the right woman," DiNozzo replied.

"You never told me you had it."

"I didn't think I had to, Gran told me that Mom said I was supposed to have it. I thought you knew that's how Mom wanted it."

"We didn't exactly talk much then."

"Dad, that was your issue not mine. I was told the ring was mine to give to who I wanted when I was ready. I gave it to Ziva and I'm not asking for it back from her, she loves it."

"I'm not asking you to do that. I'm glad that Ziva got it. That woman loves you. Why didn't you give it to Wendy?"

"Wasn't her style," he tried to explain with a shrug.

"Try again son, if there's one thing I know it's when you're lying to me."

"I tried to give it to her," DiNozzo sighed. "She said she wanted a diamond, she claimed like every other normal woman in the world. I should have realised then that wasn't gonna work out with her. I'm glad it didn't, I got someone much better out of the deal, even if I had to wait for it."

"Obviously this one turned out a lot better, got her right to the alter. I honestly didn't think you'd ever seal that deal."

"It took us a while but we got there. It wasn't my idea."

"I always knew that woman was a live spark."

DiNozzo nodded and a grin started to spread across his face. "She is and now she's my wife. I couldn't be happier."

"You're a lucky man Junior."

"And I'm not about to forget it Dad." He took a deep breath. "Is that how you felt with Mom?"

He nodded. "It doesn't excuse what I did to you, though. I understand that now. I hope you'll let me try to make my peace with that baby."

"You hurt her once, and the deal's out the window, Dad."

"I know, son. It's a girl?"

"That's what Ziva thinks, we don't know yet."

"I think this family could use a girl."

DiNozzo nodded. "I agree Dad. We should get back in there before someone starts to worry."

"What a father can't have a heart to heart with his son?"

He laughed. "No one is going to believe we started now."

"No one would have believed you would up and marry Ziva a few days ago. The situation changes," he sighed. "Your grandmother was right to hide the ring from me."

"I don't understand."

"Your mother always said that when she knew you'd found the right woman she'd give you that ring. I didn't argue with her. She said she knew something about the kind of woman a DiNozzo would really fall for. She'd of loved Ziva. If I had found it I would have thrown it in a river somewhere. I was so angry when we lost her I shouldn't have been it was nobody's fault, but I was mad for a long time that she was taken for us."

"Dad," DiNozzo sighed, not sure what to say, he knew when he was away from Ziva he'd felt like he was missing a limb, but he would never want to hurt the baby she was carrying and he hadn't even met it yet.

"You didn't lose both your parents that day, Junior but I know sure as hell felt like you did sometime. That should never have happened. I should have kept my head in the game and been the father you needed not the man I became. I'm proud of what you've accomplished in spite of me. You do what it takes to keep them safe, you fight to give that baby everything."

"Ziva can take care of herself I'm not worried about that. She's decided that all she wants right now is to be a mother to that baby, but you better believe I'll do anything to make that happen for her. I might be scared and a little unsure about the baby but I never want her to feel like I did growing up after Mom."

"Good. I am sorry you had to live through that."

"Dad this isn't your way of telling me you're dying, is it?"

"No, I'll be around for a good long time to come after what I put you through. This is my purgatory, and it's gonna last. The good lord will make me earn seeing that angel again."

He nodded. "Good, I want the baby to know that she has some family that doesn't come from my job. Don't hurt her Dad."

"I'm glad that she'll have an aunt and some uncles that will love her like she's real family. I won't son. I'll be the best grandfather I can be for her."

Ziva came outside and joined them. She put her arm around her husband, and he put his arm around her, glad she was there. The conversation he'd been having had been intense. He needed to be grounded and Ziva had been able to do it. The senior DiNozzo watched his son relax seeing his wife and knew that he needed to let everything sink in.

"Tony," she whispered. "Everyone is wondering where you went."

"Sorry, I was just having a talk with my dad," he assured her. "I think we're good, Dad?"

"We are, son. Go back inside kids, I'm going to head back to my hotel for the night it's been a long one. Congratulations again," Senior said, hugging Ziva. "I'll see you soon."

"I would like that," Ziva assured him, kissing his cheek.

The senior DiNozzo pulled his coat around himself and found a cab, leaving the junior DiNozzo with his new wife. DiNozzo pulled his wife closer to him, glad she was there so that he didn't break down in the middle of their celebration. She ran her fingers through his hair, knowing he needed a minute with her, although she didn't know what had happened, and would be all right if he never told her. He took her hand and kissed her fingers and smiled at her. She then moved to touch his lips and he sighed happily enjoying the short embrace.

"Difficult conversation?" she asked.

"Mostly for him," DiNozzo sighed. "He told me the truth for the first time in a long time and it was hard to hear."

"We will see him again, yes?"

"As long as he doesn't hurt that baby we will. He messes that up I'm done with him."

She nodded and kissed his cheek. "I understand Tony."

"Good, let's go back inside."

They went back inside to join their friends who were all laughing and having a good time. It was nice that they got that it was so rare that all of them could get together for something good. No one asked where Senior had gotten to and DiNozzo was glad he didn't have to explain it again. He wanted the rest of the evening to stay happy.

Notes: I hope you liked this part it's one of the more serious ones. Hope you are still enjoying this! Let me know what 'ya think. Heart.


	7. Part 6

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekl7  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: The craving have started, poor DiNozzo.

* * *

DiNozzo sighed as he waited for his order. He wondered how it could take so long to roll up rice, seaweed, vegetables and crab meat. Ziva had called him while he was on his way home, saying she was craving California rolls. He found the number for his favourite sushi place, and called in an order. Now he was sitting there waiting on the order, getting very impatient, and so was Ziva who had called him three more times asking when he'd be home with the sushi. He kept telling her he was waiting on the order, but he wasn't sure she believed him. He knew that she was not a woman he wanted to be on the bad side of. The tiny Japanese server finally came over with his order in a bag. He smiled thanking her glad he had paid for it first. He then headed home, and Ziva practically pounced on him.

"Sorry I'll go somewhere else next time," he assured her.

She took the bag from his hand and quickly found the California rolls, along with his favourite pieces of sashimi, tuna and salmon. She didn't even bother getting the chopsticks out of the bag, or use any of the packets of soy sauce or wasabi she just took the maki with her fingers and popped the first piece in her mouth. She made a sound that he had only heard while they were in bed together.

"I had no idea sushi had that effect on you Ziva," he laughed.

She smacked him upside the head, and he cringed. "That is what you get for making a pregnant woman wait!"

"I'm sorry I went to the world's slowest sushi place, I promise you I'm not going back there."

She had stuffed another piece into her mouth. "This is so good Tony. Are you not going to eat yours?"

He nodded and put their respective plates on the table as well as finding two shallow bowls. He mixed some of the wasabi into the low sodium soy sauce he had in his fridge and began to eat his own sushi. She sat down with him and took a pair of chopsticks but ate hers plain. He didn't even realise she enjoyed sushi before. After eating a few pieces of her own meal she began to use her chopsticks.

"Do you want to hear something odd?" she asked, and he nodded at her. "I did not like sushi much before but today when I called you it was all that I could think about."

"I've heard people say that the cravings can be pretty intense. But we'll make it work, as soon as I find a place that knows how to get our order together quicker."

"I do not even know if I will crave the same thing the next time."

"That's true, I guess we'll deal with it as it comes," he assured her.

"It is all we can do Tony. I got an appointment for an ultra sound in a few weeks."

"I'll see if I can get the day off."

"I want you to be there.

"We can find out if we're really having a girl."

She smiled. "I really think the baby is going to be a girl, maybe I just want a girl."

"Maybe, we should start thinking about names."

"We have time for that," she assured him.

"All right, I guess we should probably wait to see what we're having first."

They finished their sushi, and Tony cleaned up, then they went into the living room. They curled up on the couch together, and Tony put an old movie on. She sighed happily in his arms, getting used to watching his favourite movies with him when he was home. A lot of times she recognised the quotes he had used around her before.

"Did you ever think this would happen for us?" she asked him.

"I thought about it, but honestly no I didn't think it would until you left for Tel Aviv. When you went off the grid I was worried I might never find you to tell you the truth."

"Why did you not say anything sooner?"

He shrugged. "I didn't want to screw things up. I had you in my life. I could flirt with you when I wanted to. I was good, if I didn't act on it I couldn't fuck it up. When you weren't there every day I knew I had to fix it."

She nodded, it hadn't been easy for her to not see him every day either. She had thought at the time that if she didn't seem him she would forget about him, but it hadn't worked that way. When he showed up disheveled and unshaven at the place she had been born something had taken over her. Goose bumps formed on her arms just thinking about it, and she was sure that's when the baby had been conceived. It was one of the only times she had ever lost control of her emotions, and she got scared after knowing the power he had over her. When she'd let him leave she knew she would find her way back to him, but thanked the unborn baby for forcing her hand so quickly.

"I am glad you found me," she assured him. "I was surprised but I knew if anyone would find me it would be you. Those days we spent together in Israel were amazing. Why did you leave?"

"Because I loved you," he told her. "I thought you would be happy there, and that was all I wanted for you. Leaving, getting on the plane to head back to work was by far the hardest thing I ever had to do, but I knew it was what you wanted so I did it."

She kissed him softly. "I am sorry I made you do that."

"Sometimes if you love something you have to let it go. If it comes back to you than it is meant to be, if it doesn't it was never yours to begin with. When I saw you in the elevator it took all my will power not to push you back in there and have my way with you."

She laughed. "Tony you will never change."

"Do you want me to?"

"No, I do not. I love you for who you are."

He then kissed her softly, she moaned softly at the embrace. He then ran his hands up her ribs, and she smiled at him, staring into his eyes. There were still times he was sure he was going to wake up to discover she was just another fantasy. It had taken so long for them to get to that point in their relationship.

"I love you Ziva David," he whispered.

"It is DiNozzo now, Tony," she reminded him. "And I love you Tony."

He shook his head, still not believing it. "Ziva DiNozzo, wow that's going to take me a while to get used to."

She laughed then kissed him again, this time more seductively, and began to unbuckle his belt buckle. DiNozzo moaned, his hands in her hair. He knew that they only had so much time where they could do this, and he was going to take full advantage of it. He turned off the TV not wanting to hear it in the background through this encounter.

Notes: There's a tiny little ouch of Tony in the next part just a heads up. Thank you for the reviews and support, keep 'em coming it makes my day.


	8. Part 7

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: So Tony suffers a small injury in this part, a little bit of fluff at the beginning too. The California rolls thing is probably cause I was wanting sushi while I was writing lol...

* * *

DiNozzo was at his desk, typing away when his phone began to ring. He didn't look at the number when he answered it he just wanted the device to stop making noise so he could focus on what he was doing. He was in the zone

"Yeah, DiNozzo," he said.

"Tony," he heard Ziva say. "When will you be home?"

"It'll be late."

"Oh, I was hoping you could bring me some sushi."

He laughed. "Just hit the fourth number on the speed dial of the land line, and order whatever you want, they'll deliver and they have my credit card number already."

"Thank you, I will see you when you get home. I love you."

He smiled. "I love you too."

He then hung up the phone and continued typing for a moment until he felt eyes on him. He thought it was a perfectly normal way to end a conversation with his wife, but the looks he was getting made him question if it was too early for that, or if his co-workers still hadn't fully grasped that he was actually married. They both knew a lot about his past, but they had to have seen how he had felt about her for a long time before they acted on those feelings.

"Ziva," he explained. "She's s been craving California rolls. I made sure I got it covered even when I was stuck here. I don't think director Vance would take 'I need to bring my wife sushi' as a reason for me to leave at the drop of a hat."

"Would be funny to see what he says," McGee mentioned.

"I don' think he has the same sense of humour as us McGiggles."

"You're probably right."

DiNozzo then picked up the phone. "Just making sure the deal is still in place," he told whoever was on the other end before hanging up.

Gibbs smiled. "Wish I could have done that Shannon always wanted fries with gravy, from this old diner. I'm sure that place only hired cougars who hit on servicemen. And creamsicles, she hated them would take a bite and spit it out."

DiNozzo chuckled happy to hear his boss share that memory. "Great, she might start craving something else."

"Makes life interesting, DiNozzo," Gibbs assured him.

"I know, I'm rolling with the punches. I'm just worried the baby is gonna come out and demand California rolls."

Gibbs laughed. "Doubt it, Kelly wouldn't touch fries."

Gibbs then went back to work without saying anything more about his first wife and only child. DiNozzo wondered if he might share more small stories like that as Ziva's pregnancy went on. It was nice to see their boss let his guard down a little. He continued what he had been working on glad he was able to get back into.

"I got something Boss," DiNozzo stated after a few minutes.

"Put it up," Gibbs told him.

He hit a few buttons and put what he'd found up on the plasma. He began to quickly rattle off all the details he could in as little time as possible. He hoped that what he had found really was something. He was still a little distracted by Ziva's call. He knew a craving wasn't huge but he wanted to know she was taken care of. No sooner did Gibbs process the information he'd been given than the team was out the door on their way to the scene.

Gibbs pulled up onto the residence, and the quietly gave his orders to his team. They all nodded and began to creep around the perimeter looking for signs of their suspect. They each took a door. DiNozzo had been trying to be extra careful at work, knowing he now had a wife and an unborn child to come home to. He heard movement and his instincts kicked in.

DiNozzo saw the guy leaving, "Boss, I got him," he whispered into the radio, which had apparently been loud enough for the suspect to hear and start running. "In pursuit."

He took off after the suspect who looked a lot like the pictures they had seen, only with a long shaggy beard, and longer hair which didn't fool him for a second. He was running after the suspect when something slippery ended up under toe and he felt himself falling. As he fell he took a shot, and thankfully got the suspect in the foot which had stopped him. Gibbs came around the corner, and after DiNozzo nodded at him he arrested the suspect. McGee came around the corner and called for ambulances.

"You all right DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked.

"Yeah Boss," he tried to say but he went to get up but found he couldn't support his own weight. "No, I was wrong, Boss, I definitely did something to my foot," he replied.

"Probably a sprain. Paramedics are on the way I'll call Ziva."

His mind began to race, if he called Ziva she might think the worst. This was just a small injury, he could get patched up and go home, a little late, which she was already expecting, and explain to her that he had had a slight mishap on the job. It wasn't as if he'd been hurt by the suspect, he had likely slipped in dog shit which had been hidden by leaves on the ground. He was mostly embarrassed that he might need to stay off his feet for a few days as a result.

"Boss do you have to?" he asked, hopefully.

"The alternative is to hobble into your house and have her break your other leg the second she sees you. Trust me you want her to know what's going on with you, you learn a few things after a couple marriages."

"Got it, Boss."

They heard the sirens getting closer and before long the paramedics were on scene. Once Gibbs knew DiNozzo was in good hands he dialed Ziva. He watched as the paramedics loaded DiNozzo in the back of the ambulance first. He could see McGee talking with the second pair of paramedics, and knew that things were going to be fine while he dealt with this call. He watched McGee get into the ambulance so that their suspect could not get away. The phone was ringing and he hoped he was not interrupting Ziva.

"Gibbs?" Ziva asked, uncertainly when she answered the phone.

"Ziver," he replied. "Tony wiped out while pursuing a suspect today and he's on his way to the hospital. He'll be fine, it was just his foot."

"I am on my way, thank you for calling."

Before he could say anything more the line went dead and Gibbs knew that his former agent was on her way to the hospital. He knew she knew the injury was minor, but he also knew it was the first time DiNozzo had been hurt since they had been married and her nerves were already on the edge due to the pregnancy. Gibbs could only hope that she would start to cool down the moment she got to see for herself that DiNozzo, was really all right, and had likely only sprained his ankle.

Notes: The next part deals with him being hurt, there's a small misunderstanding between them. Let me know what you think! Thank you as always for the support it means so much.


	9. Part 8

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: Ziva gets to the hospital and is a little annoyed with her husband. First day back at work today, nice happy thoughts would be nice.

* * *

Ziva got to the hospital, a nurse had let her in to see DiNozzo's as soon as she had told her she was his wife. She wasn't sure what to expect when she had gotten the call from Gibbs that DiNozzo had been hurt. Although her former boss had assured her that it was only a minor injury and that her husband would be fine she had been running on pure adrenaline since she had heard he was hurt.

When she saw him in the bed, with only an IV drip in his arm she was glad it wasn't anything more serious, just like she had been told. She began looking over him making sure he really was all right, acting in a way she had often scoffed at in the past but now fully understood. She needed to see for herself that he was fine. With the hand that didn't have the IV drip in it he ran his fingers along her cheeks, and smiled at her.

"Ziva I'm fine," DiNozzo assured her, squeezing her hand. "I've been through worse. I survived the plague."

"That was before I met you, and do not bring that up!" Ziva snapped. "Do you know how nerve wracking it is to get a call saying that you were hurt? Gibbs told me it was minor but I was still scared Tony!"

"It's not a big deal. It's not like I was shot at or anything. You knew this could happen. You've done this job before you know what can happen. You cannot be asking me to give this up like you did Ziva! You know I love my job."

"I know that and being worried about you doesn't mean you have the right to accuse me of that! I am not asking you to give up your job! I am not stupid Tony, I would never ask you to do that. Quitting was the hardest thing I have ever done, and I only did it because the bad was starting to outweigh the good for me. I could not bring my best and I had to stop. Do not make me regret coming back here for you."

"I shouldn't have said, I know you would never ask me to do that, and while you were gone I felt like I was missing a limb. I am so happy to have you back, and I hope I never do anything stupid enough to make you leave again cause I wouldn't be to live with myself. But you know that I've done way worse than wiping out, hell I've gotten hurt worse in front of you before."

"We were not married then!" she hissed.

"I get that, but this was a bigger blow to my ego than an actual injury."

"In case you have not noticed you are in a hospital Tony! A hospital, where doctors fix things which are not egos, Tony!"

"Ziva, I slipped on what I think was probably dog crap, while chasing an unarmed suspect, at a place that wasn't even a crime scene. I was able to get a clear shot of his foot, hell I thought I was just fine until I went to stand up. I don't understand why you're overreacting like this! You're acting like I was shot at or worse."

"I am allowed to worry about you Tony! You are my husband, or did you forget that in your fall?"

"I could never forget that. I don't know what to say, other than I'm fine."

"Forget rule six," she hissed.

"I'm sorry, Ziva. But this really wasn't a big deal. I'll be more careful next time."

She then hugged him, glad he had finally said what she needed to hear. "Be careful, not just for me." She took his hand and put it on her belly.

He kissed her forehead. "I will. I promise you that, both of you, if you, baby, have ears yet."

"Yes she has ears Tony! She has had ears since I came here. She has heard all the foolish things you have said since I have been home."

"I guess I should be more careful about what I say."

"If you did that she would not recognise her father when she hears his voice after she is born."

"You're probably right," he laughed. "I am sorry that I scared you today Ziva."

He was about to kiss her but a nurse came in, and put something into his IV drip. She had hoped that he would be released to go home sooner rather than later, and now the nurses were putting things in his IV. She sighed, and hoped that this didn't mean that something more was going on.

"What was that?" Ziva asked.

"Just a pain killer," the nurse assured her. "Once that drips in we can take him off the IV the doctor just wants to make sure he'll be able to sleep with no pain when he gets home."

"All right, thank you," she said with a smile.

Ziva was not looking forward to how he was going to start acting as soon as the pain killers were in his blood stream and fully kicked in. She had not often had to deal with him when he was given pain killers but she knew how out of it he could become. She wanted him to feel better, and he probably was in pain but she wasn't sure she had the energy to deal with him. Between the stress of finding out he was hurt and the usual fatigue she would have from the pregnancy by the end of the day she knew that it was going to be trying to also deal with this.

As the IV drip started to drain DiNozzo was getting more and more restless, but he couldn't get up off the bed and pace because of his foot being wrapped. It was already going to be a challenge getting home. In his boredom he began to tap on the side of the bedrail, with his fingers. After a few minutes Ziva thought she was going to lose it.

"Tony!" she snapped. "That is incredibly annoying and I am very tired!"

"Oh, uh, right sorry, I'm just done with this."

"I understand really but we need to wait for your doctor to release you."

A nurse came in a few minutes later, and looked at the IV drip. She smiled seeing that medicine had all dripped through. She then carefully took out DiNozzo's IV, keeping pressure on it for a moment, before covering the spot on his hand with a cotton ball and medical tape. She assured them that Doctor Black would be with them shortly and he would likely be given his discharge papers when she came in.

Notes: Well that was that, the next part is a bit of pain killer Tony hehe... Let me know if you like it. Thank you for all the support on this it means a lot.


	10. Part 9

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: Tony has a run in with the doctor who he's flirted with in the past, and is a little loopy for Ziva. This part came from watching too many you tube clips. Him being hurt wasn't supposed to be so long but that's how it worked out I hope it works.

* * *

As they waited she took his hand and for a moment he relaxed just staring up at her. She then leaned in and kissed him softly before she pulled a chair that was in the corner closer. She again took his hand, tracing a pattern on it with her fingers softly. He smiled at her, what she was doing was helping him to relax and felt a lot less restless. The two of them were relieved when the doctor came through the door holding a clipboard. They knew that meant he would likely get to go home soon.

"Who is this Mister DiNozzo?" the doctor asked him, as she worked on removing his IV drip.

"My wife," he replied, with a sly smile.

"You don't remember me, do you?"

"Should I?"

The woman rolled her eyes. "You're a piece of work Anthony DiNozzo, you really are. Are you asking your co-worker to pose as your wife to take the heat off you?"

"We're not co-workers anymore, we eloped she's my wife for real," he explained then looked at Ziva. "You're stuck with me Ziva David- I mean DiNozzo."

"All right, all right very special agent DiNozzo I believe you," sighed the doctor.

"You look very familiar to me and you must have met me before to have used that description I only use it on select special people." He then turned to Ziva, and whispered. "Do you remember her?" But she shook her head in reply.

"I have treated you before," the doctor assured him. "It was a few years ago however."

He thought back to what name she'd given him when he first came in. "Doctor Black? I don't remember a Doctor Black. I usually remember doctors 'cause to be honest I don't really like 'em had one mess with my heart, you know how it is."

"Funny because the last time I saw you you were hitting on me, you even asked me out, then you backtracked once your head injury started to heal."

"Hot Doctor Leslie!" Both the women in the room glared at him. "Okay, okay I remember you now. I'm sorry I was an ass back then, that's not the drugs talking. But Ziva really is my wife, that's not the meds either, look see wedding band!" He held up his hand and stared at it for a moment. "She's pregnant too."

"I noticed that."

"The baby's mine."

"Tony why did you feel the need to say that?" asked Ziva.

"I don't know. You know how I get on pain medication. Please don't shoot me, or ninja kick me."

Ziva rolled her eyes. "Doctor when can he go home?"

"I was just getting his release papers together. He'll need a few days off his feet, he's got a pretty good sprain, and he's acting like he's bumped his head so if he continues to act odd feel free to bring him back. I'll give you a prescription for some more medication, but only use it if you really have to."

"Thank you, and trust me I will only use it if he really starts to whine."

Tony began to smile. "I love you so much Zee-vah, nothing happened between me and the doctor, you know?"

"I know Tony," Ziva assured him. "How about we get you home and to bed?"

"I like the sound of that. Are you going to get in bed with me?"

She shook her head. "Not in the way you are hoping in the shape you are in."

She signed the paperwork she needed to sign. Glad that he didn't have to stay, and his injury really was just a sprain to his ankle and nothing major. She knew that the next time she got a call like that it could be a lot worse, but she tried not to think about it. They left the hospital and they got into the car the second they were in he began to clutch the handle on the roof.

"Tony what are you doing?" she asked him.

"I know how you drive," he told her. "I promised Ziva I wouldn't get hurt again."

She shook her head, not sure what to say to that. "My driving is not that bad!"

"I've heard that before." He then smiled at her, still holding onto the handle, his head resting against the head rest. "You're beautiful. I love you."

"Tony, try to get some rest."

"Mm, no, you said you were putting me to bed. I'm staying awake 'til you tuck me in and kiss me goodnight."

She rolled her eyes. "Tony!" she snapped.

"I'll be good."

His head then started to bop to the music and before she knew what was going he was signing along the music. She sighed softly, but oddly his terrible, and out of tune singing seemed like an improvement over his earlier ramblings. Since she had become pregnant she had been trying hard to drive more carefully, and she was glad when she pulled onto their street, and the building they lived in came into view. She knew she would miss the apartment they now shared when they found the larger home that suited their needs for their growing family.

"Home sweet home," DiNozzo said as she parked.

"For now," she reminded him. "Although I suppose we will have to put that on hold until you can put more weight on your foot."

"Right I'm a DiNozzo we're quick healers."

"I hope so because I may shoot you if you're on this medication too long."

"I promise I'll try to be good." They got out of the car and she went up to their floor, and to the door, opening it for them.

"You're really coming home with me!" Tony exclaimed.

"We are married Tony," she growled at him practically pushing him through the door.

He fed his fish out of habit and then went into the bathroom to brush his teeth, and came out in his boxers and climbed into bed. Ziva came in a few minutes later, and went into the first bathroom as well. She came back into the room in one of his old shirts. He couldn't help but stare at her as she climbed into bed him get into the bed with him, she was getting slower as the pregnancy came along.

"Gibbs is going to kill me when he finds out about this," he told her.

"No, he is not, it will all be clear in the morning, Tony, goodnight."

"What no nookie?"

"I am sick of learning about aphorisms for sex!"

"Euphemisms," he corrected.

"Whatever, go to sleep before I slip you a tranquiliser."

He nodded. "I love you Ziva."

She kissed him softly. "I love you too Tony, goodnight."

He rolled over and moments later he was asleep, leaving her wide awake. Her mind was racing about what had happened. She knew that it could happen in his line of work, and she'd seen him get through much worse, but it was different now. She knew it would only get harder as time went on, and hoped she would not have to deal with this often. For the first time in a long time she prayed before she fell asleep, asking god to always bring him home. She knew it was going to be the first of many similar prayers.

Notes: I liked how this turned out. Let me know if you did. Thanks as always for the support on this.


	11. Part 10

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: It's time for the ultrasound! Then they go show off the pictures hehe... wow we're officially past the halfway point here how did that happen?

* * *

DiNozzo was excited about the appointment Ziva had. This was the ultrasound where they would ideally find out the sex of their baby. He was curious if her instinct was right, and they were going to have a daughter. He liked the idea of having a daughter. They were sitting in the waiting room, he was leafing through a magazine, and generally being jumpy which Ziva was trying to ignore.

"Mister and Missus DiNozzo," the doctor called.

It still surprised him to hear that, he was sure that she would be the kind of woman who would have kept her maiden name, but she told him it was part of what she had been working on since she left NCIS; taking his name was the last step in that transformation for her. He didn't question her after that, he was just happy to have her back, that she hadn't chosen to stay in Israel after all. They went into the room and Ziva sat down on the exam the table, glad that this wasn't an appointment where she would need to wear a gown. The doctor came in and smiled at Ziva.

"All right, Ziva, how are you feeling?" she asked.

"Good, things are going well so far. I have been having a lot of cravings lately, mostly for sushi it has been a little odd."

"That's perfectly normal to have cravings, and they can be intense, no unusual symptoms?"

"No, everything seems to be normal, some heartburn and I'm a little more emotional than I am used to."

"That's to be expected. Good now let's have a look at how the baby is developing, this is going to be a little bit cold," the doctor warned her.

Ziva laid back on the table and the doctor lifted her shirt and put the paddle to her stomach. DiNozzo's eyes grew wide as he saw the sceen, Ziva smiled staring at the screen. Suddenly everything became real as he stared at the screen. There was really a baby in there. He was surprised he was able to see everything so clearly he had been warned that it could be hard to make out the images on a sonogram but he saw it right away.

"That's our baby Tony," Ziva marvelled.

"I didn't think I'd see it clearly, but that's amazing," Tony explained, and terrifying he thought to himself.

"The technology has come a long way," the doctor told them. "Do you want to know the sex of the baby today?"

"Yes, we do if possible," replied Ziva.

"All right, excellent, first we're going to check the major organs." She began the exam explaining to them what everything was. "Everything is looking great, and is developing as expected. How about I get you your first pictures of your daughter?"

Ziva grinned. "I knew it. Tony we are having a girl," she told him.

He kissed her forehead. "I'm so happy. I never thought I'd be one of those guys who would have an ultrasound picture on his desk."

"While you're here Mister DiNozzo, do you want to hear the baby's heartbeat?"

"It's Tony, and could I really?"

The doctor nodded and took another machine. Ziva smiled she'd already heard the baby's heartbeat back in Israel but she was excited for DiNozzo to hear it as well. The doctor put an instrument on her belly, and a sound could be heard. It didn't exactly sound like a heartbeat, it sounded almost like galloping, but he was still amazed by the fact her finally got to see and hear the baby.

"That's the baby?" DiNozzo asked, shocked.

"Yes, it is," the doctor assured him.

"Wow that's amazing."

The doctor performed a few more quick routine checks on Ziva, before giving her the ultrasound pictures, and letting the couple go. They looked at the pictures in the car and smiled at each other. DiNozzo knew that he wanted at least one of those pictures to keep close by when he was at work.

"I never thought I'd be the kind of guy to have ultrasound pictures on his desk," DiNozzo laughed. "I can keep one there right?"

"Me either, of course you can have one, you'll get first pick. Should we stop in to show everyone the pictures on our way home?"

"If I head to the office Gibbs may keep me."

"I'm willing to risk it, I want to show them."

He nodded. "Sure."

They drove to the Navy yard. Ziva had to get visitor's pass, which DiNozzo still found odd, and then they got into the elevator. They decided to go to Abby's lab first knowing she would be excited, and would likely be the one who would be able to tell what they were showing her.

"A part of me misses this," Ziva sighed.

"If you ever change your mind you know Gibbs would take you back," DiNozzo assured her, as they got to their floor.

"I know but right now I want to focus on her," she assured him, her hand on her stomach.

They went into Abby's lab. "Tony! Ziva!" she exclaimed, hugging them both. "It's almost like old times, other than I don't have anything for you, cause you're off, and you've got a visitor's badge so I can't really tell you anything even if I had something."

DiNozzo laughed. "We have something to show you." Ziva then gave the forensic scientist the ultrasound pictures.

"Wow!" Abby exclaimed. "That's my niece? I bet she's gonna be adorable! I guess you got some of that Gibbs gut too Ziva!"

"Yes that is her, and it wasn't like that I just had this feeling I was having a girl, you'll see," Ziva assured her, smiling. "You are the first person we showed the pictures to."

"Aww you guys are awesome! Thank you!"

Abby hugged them both happy that they were there. A moment later McGee came in looking for Abby, he was surprised to see Ziva and DiNozzo standing there. It was still strange for him to see Ziva with a visitor's pass but he understood that she wanted something different, and he was happy that she wasn't in Israel anymore.

"They brought in the sonogram pictures!" Abby exclaimed.

"Those always look like blobs to me. Do you know if it's a boy or a girl, yet?" asked McGee.

"We are having a girl," Ziva replied, not surprised that Gibbs came in a moment later.

Abby showed Gibbs the ultrasound pictures, and the senior agent smiled. Abby smiled too glad to see Gibbs softening even if it was only for a moment. It was still strange not having Ziva there every day but at least her work family was complete again and was growing. The whole team was relieved to see that the couple was so happy. If they had to lose Ziva as member of their team they were glad that it was because she had married DiNozzo and wanted to a mother to their children.

Before they left they went toward autopsy, to show Ducky and Palmer the pictures as well. The two of them were happy the couple had come to see them as well. Ducky was able to see the baby, and told them a story about the history of sonograms, as well as ways women, before there were sonograms, would try to predict the sex of a baby. They didn't stay too long before they headed home.

Notes: Most things baby freak me out, when my sister was pregnant I got hear my nephew's heartbeat it was really bizarre cause it doesn't sound like a heartbeat I wanted to work that in. Let me know if you like it.


	12. Part 11

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: Tony's nerves start to fray, he goes to talk to Gibbs.

* * *

After they'd had dinner that night DiNozzo left the apartment, telling Ziva he had to deal with something. He ended up driving straight to his boss' place, and let himself in. He went downstairs and sure enough he was down there, some bourbon in a glass, and making something out of wood, the beginnings of another boat seemed to be on the back burner.

"You gonna stand there DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked.

"No, Boss," he went down the stairs.

"Something on your mind?"

DiNozzo nodded. "I saw the ultrasound pictures, I heard her heartbeat today. I kind of knew what it meant when I first saw Ziva when she came back, but now it's real. There's a baby in there, and it's mine. Me, I'm gonna be father, Boss."

"And?"

"What if I screw this up?"

"You won't."

"It's not that easy. You've met my father, that's what I know. I've avoided being around babies, and kids my whole life. I've stopped talking to friends when they've had kids. I have no idea what I'm supposed to do with a baby, doesn't this kid deserve more than that?"

"The baby deserves her parents. It's different when it's yours, you figure it out."

"That doesn't change the fact I don't know how to hold a newborn. I've never done it before I've avoided it, mostly because I don't have siblings. I don't know how to change a diaper or how to feed a baby, I've read about all kinds of things you need to do with a newborn, but that doesn't mean I know what I'm doing. This is a tiny person who you help to shape and grow up right and I don't have any clue what I'm doing."

"Holding a newborn is easy, it's when they start to move it's hard, but by then you'll know what to do. You're having a girl so diapers are easier since you don't get peed at, and you can start on a stuffed toy, that's what I did. Feeding a baby will likely be up to Ziva for the first little while so you'll have time to get used to everything else pretty quickly."

"It can't be that easy, I don't know the first thing about babies. I can try practising on a stuffed toy but I know that real babies move, it's not the same. What if I screw her up?"

"You won't."

"How do you know, Boss?"

"You came here. It's normal to be nervous."

"This is more than nervous, I'm terrified. I want to figure out how to be a good father."

"It's the same as being a good agent, you trust your gut."

"It can't be that easy."

"I didn't say it was easy, being a parent is the hardest thing you can do, but you listen to your gut and you'll make the right choices. You've got Ziva to help you with the rest of it."

"Thanks, Boss, that helps. What are you working on?"

"A cradle."

"No really, what is that?"

"It's going to be a cradle for your daughter, DiNozzo. Those self-rocking, lullaby singing bassinettes aren't as durable, and have no character; with this she can see out the sides."

"Thank you, Boss I'm sure Ziva will love it once it's done."

"Now go home and talk to your wife."

DiNozzo nodded, and headed home. When he got in Ziva was curled up on the couch reading a book. She looked up at him and smiled. She had her hand on her stomach. He watched her for a long moment, it still shocked him that she was there and pregnant sometimes. He knew he had to talk to her about what he was feeling, but he'd never been good at that.

"Come here, you can feel her," she told him.

"Sure," he said, sitting next to her. She took his hand and put it on her belly. "Ziva, we need to talk."

"Is something wrong?"

"I don't know. This has all been overwhelming for me."

"I know it happened quickly."

He nodded. "I've never been around babies before, and you know how bad I am with kids. I went over to talk to Gibbs. He told me to trust my gut."

"I hope your gut is not telling you that you do not want this."

"No, nothing like that, I want this it's just all so new to me. He also told me to talk to you, but I don't know what to say. I can't find the right words."

"That is a first." She kissed his cheek. "I will help you figure everything out Tony. I know you're going to be a great father."

"I hope so."

"I know you will be because you are worried about this and you want to deal with how you are feeling before she is born. Did you feel that?"

"That's amazing, I can't believe that's really a baby. Doesn't it feel strange?"

"A little but I know that it is normal, it means she is growing like she is supposed to."

He nodded and kissed her forehead. "Are you nervous?"

"Of course I am Tony, but I want what is best for her and that will help us make the right choices. We are going to be responsible to teach her what she needs to grow up happy, and we don't have the best family backgrounds. We want better for her and that is what makes me realise we will be fine. She is much safer here than I was growing up."

"And she'll have her mom close when she needs her."

She nodded. "I am looking forward to that. I may be bored right now but I will have lots to do when she is born."

"I can't wait. I just hope you don't get mad when I ask a million questions about what I should do."

"Eventually you will know what to do," she assured him. "We will figure all of this out together."

He kissed her lips softly. "That helps. Gibbs was right."

"He usually is." She yawned.

"Why don't we get you to bed?"

She laughed. "I know what that means."

He shrugged. "I'm not always looking for that."

He helped her to her feet and they went into their bedroom. As soon as she was in there she curled up on her side of the bed, and yawned again. DiNozzo stripped down to his boxers and got into the bed next to her, pulling her close. He kissed her softly and she fell asleep almost right away. DiNozzo stayed awake a little longer, his mind still racing about everything, but feeling more at ease after talking about his nerves. He just hoped he would soon be as confident as everyone else was that he would figure it out.

Notes: I hope everyone liked that he went to Gibbs about his nerves. Let me know what you think, reviews make everyone happy.


	13. Part 12

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: It's time for the baby shower! Thank you as always for the support on this. It means sooo much.

* * *

DiNozzo still couldn't believe that Abby had managed to plan a baby shower without Ziva knowing anything about it. All he was going to have to do was get her out of the house for a few hours so that she could set everything up, but it was proving to be harder than originally thought. When she'd woken up that morning she had started to unpack boxes, and she seemed to be in a zone.

They'd moved into their new home a few weeks earlier, but were still working on getting everything in order. They had the kitchen and their bedroom under control, and large furniture where they needed it to be, but there were a lot of boxes which had been in storage since Ziva had gone to Israel, and that morning she seemed to be determined to get through as many of them as possible. Every time he turned around Ziva was moving past him with another article find a place for it.

They'd found a three bedroom, two bathroom semi-detached home not far from the Navy yard. It had a great back yard for when the baby got older, and had a mostly unfinished basement which they could make into whatever they wanted. If they decided to have another child at some point they could add another room to be used as a guest room. But for the time being it had walls and they could use it as play room if they wanted. That was where they decided to keep all the boxes for the time being.

"Ziva," Tony sighed, going down the stairs, shocked to see what she'd gotten done. "You deserve a break."

"I am in the bone," she assured him.

"Zone," he laughed. "I bet the baby would love a break."

"She is fine."

"I thought we could go out for all you can eat sushi."

"But Tony," she sighed.

"The boxes are something for you to do while I'm at work. It's been so long since we've gone out for lunch."

"I guess you are right. I will go get changed."

He smiled glad that he'd gotten her to agree. He texted Abby to inform her that he had finally managed to convince her to leave the house and she would be safe to set up the house however she wanted. Ziva came out of the bedroom wearing a long sun dress, which showed the pregnancy beautifully.

"You look amazing Ziva," he told her, grinning at her.

"I feel so fat today," she groaned.

"Don't say that. If it wasn't for the fact I'm starving I'd show you just how great you look."

She laughed. "You are insatiable, is that the right word."

"It is. Come on let's go."

He put his hand on the small of her back, but it slipped down to her ass as they were walking to the car. She smiled at him, glad that he showed her very often just how attractive he thought she still was even when she didn't feel it. They drove to one of his favourite sushi places, which he knew offered an all you can eat option.

They enjoyed their meal, talking about they wanted for the baby's room, which they still hadn't started working on. He had gotten her to hold off on buying anything, not knowing what their friends were going to give them at the baby shower. He was glad it was finally happening because he wasn't sure he would be able to keep her out of the baby stores much longer. They also talked a little bit about names but they weren't getting anywhere.

After they had eaten they went back home, and DiNozzo was surprised he didn't see any cars he recognised. He was glad, because if Ziva had seen the cars the cat would have been out of the bag before she got the surprise. He knew that it meant a lot to Abby to keep it a surprise. He was impressed that she had even remember to lock the door after she had let the guests in. He unlocked the door, and they were greeted by a huge banner that read "it's a girl!", and all of their friends sitting there. Abby thought it might be a bad idea for everyone jump up and scream surprise.

"Tony, how did you do this?" Ziva asked.

"It wasn't me, all I did was get you out of the house, the rest was all Abby," he told her.

She went over to Abby and hugged her. "Thank you Abby, I was not expecting this."

"I know that baby showers are usually for the ladies, but I think it's nice to have everyone here."

"I agree."

She looked around and smiled at everyone, even Gibbs had shown up. Along with the team Abby Borin was there, and a few other people the couple had always gotten along with in the building. She couldn't believe that Abby had actually managed to do this and she had had no idea about it. She was also surprised to see a rather large pile of gifts on the table. Abby then ushered her into a rocking chair she had never seen before. Everyone socialised for a little while, and Ziva was glad that Abby hadn't planned any strange baby shower games.

"I think it's time for presents!" Abby exclaimed, taking the first of packages. "This one is from Abby, not me Abby though."

"All right," said Ziva smiling, she opened the gift, she was surprised to see inside there was a baby sling, and some colourful reusable cloth diapers.

"I know it's a little strange," the other Abby explained. "But my sister says that her daughter gets diaper rash a lot less when she uses those, and she says every mom should have a sling to keep the baby close."

"Thank you."

She began to go through the gifts she had been given. She had gotten a lot of clothes from everyone, especially Abby who admitted she might have gone a little crazy in the baby section. She also got a lot of bibs, and receiving blankets. The Palmers had given then sheets for the crib, and Breena explained she would make then a nice warm quilt when they picked the colours for the nursery. After that Abby and McGee disappeared into the dining room and came out holding each end of a cradle, complete with a small mattress, a warm purple blanket, and a mobile attached to one end.

"This is from Gibbs," Abby said.

Ziva's jaw dropped. "Tell me you did not make that!"

Gibbs smiled. "I did Ziver, I'm also working on a high chair, but you won't need that right away. They don't make things the way they used to, and wood is so much more durable."

"Thank you so much Gibbs, that's amazing."

"And I got you the chair you're sitting in and a crib Ziva, which we will bring by when you decide which room will be for the baby."

"Ducky that's too much."

"Don't worry my dear, they are used, they were mine. The crib is safe by today's standards. My father was also very good with his hands, and didn't like that in all the cribs the looked at had slats a baby could put his hands through. Mother was a very sentimental and superstitious woman, and had many of our most prized items shipped overseas when we came here. She always said it was bad luck to get rid of a crib until you are sure you can't have any more children."

"We will keep that in mind."

Ducky had also gotten the baby some wash clothes and hooded towels, since his larger gifts had not cost him anything. Ziva couldn't believe he had actually given them furniture which had obviously meant a lot to the Mallard family and was determined to take good care of the items. McGee had gotten them travel system, a stroller and matching bucket style car seat, in a neutral grey colour. She now understood why DiNozzo had been so reluctant to let her go baby shopping lately. There were still things they would need but a lot of the important stuff was already taken care of. They spent a few more hours socialising, and telling stories about their experiences with babies. Everyone enjoyed the time outside of work, and were happy to celebrate with their friends.

Notes: I hope you liked this. Let me know :D I'll be posting a little late tomorrow due to a staff party.


	14. Part 13

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: Just another day in the DiNozzo house.

* * *

DiNozzo had come in after a rough day at work, and was happy when he was greeted by the smell of lasagna in the oven. It was one of his ultimate comfort foods and he wondered if Abby might have had something to do with Ziva deciding to make that.

"Ziva?" he called, looking through the house they shared, it had been a lot easier to find her when they were in the apartment.

She was in what was going to the baby's room. Ducky and Palmer had dropped off the crib a few days before and she had finally decided where in the room she wanted it. They were still trying to figure out how they wanted to decorate the room. It was a decent sized room, and Ziva had put crib on the opposite wall from the window. There was enough room on the wall where the closet was to set up the dresser change table. They also had a book case, and the rocking chair from Ducky in there.

"I guess we really need to figure out what we want in here," he told her.

She nodded. "I really like that blanket Gibbs got her. Maybe instead of doing something pink, we could paint the room purple instead?" Ziva suggested.

"Purple? That could work since we didn't really want pink anyway."

"Good, I will let Breena know we have picked a colour."

"I don't think that purple will look nice with the alphabet idea that we were thinking about."

"I was thinking about that today, the bright letters would be nice while she is a baby but she might not like it when she gets a little older."

"You could be right," he agreed. "What were you thinking instead?"

"Maybe a fairy tale?"

"That's a good idea, then we could have a princess in her room."

Ziva smiled. "And how are we going to get that?"

"Draw it."

"All right, we will find someone to do that when we decide which story we are going to use. How was your day?"

He groaned softly. "Had one of those days where nothing was falling into place on the case, I'm surprised Gibbs let us go home, but he said we needed to start with fresh eyes in the morning."

She hugged him. "I am sorry to hear that those are the worst days."

"Yeah, are you making lasagna?"

"I am, and I made the noodles and the sauce myself, your father gave me some recipes."

"You have Nonna's tomato sauce recipe?" DiNozzo asked hopefully.

"I do not know your father told me I could have it now that I am officially a DiNozzo."

He kissed her. "Ziva! This is amazing! You have Nonna's tomato sauce recipe! Dad and I haven't had in years! Only DiNozzo women are allowed to know it. Technically my mom should have shown you how to make it but I'm even more excited for dinner tonight."

She laughed. "I did not know what pasta sauce was such a big thing."

"It's an Italian thing, the family recipe is a thing of beauty. This is just what I needed today."

She smiled and kissed him softly. He relaxed into the embrace for a long moment, pulling her toward him. As he did so he felt like the baby was doing a jig, he laughed and pulled away from her.

"I don't think she likes that," he told her.

"No, I think that means she does like something."

"I should go check on dinner."

He nodded and let her go. She went into the kitchen, and slipped some garlic bread into the oven. While she was doing that he got down their plates as well as cutlery. He was acting like a child pacing around the oven waiting for it to be done.

"If you are going to do that, I am going to sit down, Tony. My feet have been swelling lately," Ziva tol him.

"That's fine," he assured her.

He waited for the lasagna and bread to be done. He was glad when he finally about to pull everything out of the oven. The lasagna looked and smelled amazing, but he let it sit for a moment as he cut the garlic bread. He put a slice bread, and piece of lasagna on each of their plates, then brought them into the dining room.

"This looks amazing Ziva," he told her, as he put down their plates. He sat down and took a bite and practically moaned. "Tastes amazing too, just like Nonna and Mom used to make, wow."

"I am glad you like, I had never made pasta sauce before."

"You nailed it! Funny, I never thought of you cooking before we got married."

She smiled. "I never had a need to cook before, it does not mean I did not know how to. My mother used to have me help her in the kitchen when I was young."

"I always pictured you as the kind of kid who was outside digging up bugs."

"I was," she laughed. "When it would rain or I would get into trouble she would make me stay inside, and help make dinner. She would tell me that I would thank her one day when I was married she truly believed the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. I told her if I was going to marry a man he would know how to cook. She would get so mad at when I told her if I was married," she laughed, glad she was sharing this with him. "She hated to think that I would not get married. I told her I would have to find the right man and then I would list qualities that I thought no man could have."

DiNozzo smiled at her. "I hope I have a few of them."

"You do have quite a few of them. I know she would have liked you. She would have known long before I did that you would be the man I would marry."

"Why's that?"

"Because of who you are, Tony. You are the only person who can simultaneously make me want to shoot you and make me laugh."

"I hope that's a good thing."

"It is it is part of your charm Tony. My mother would have seen that and known that we had a connection. She probably would have bugged me until I did something about it, I am glad my father never wanted to see me married off."

He nodded. "I think I understand. Senior told me quite often I should seal the deal with you."

"I hope I am more to you than that."

"You are," he assured her, taking her hand. "Not to sound cheesy, but you're the best thing that's ever happened to me."

She smiled at him. "I feel the same way about you."

They finished their meal and cleaned up, DiNozzo was glad to see he would have some leftovers for work the next day. He couldn't wait to invite Senior over to try the sauce as well. It was exactly how he'd remembered it. After everything was away they curled up on the couch together to watch a movie together. DiNozzo knew that after the night he'd spent at home he would be able to focus better on the case he was working, and with Ziva he found he could leave work there when he needed but she also understood what he was dealing with daily.

Notes: I hope you enjoyed this, let me know. Thank you as always for the support folks.


	15. Part 14

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: Ziva is nesting and Tony is trying to keep her comfortable. Thanks as always for the support it means a lot.

* * *

DiNozzo walked into the three bedroom house he now shared with Ziva. It was finally starting to feel like he was actually going home when he would walk in, and he knew once the baby was there he would feel completely at ease. He was surprised to be greeted by the smell of quite a few household cleaners as well as a roast cooking. Despite the fact that she was at home they shared the cleaning duties. He went through the house looking for his wife, wondering what had gotten into her. He finally found her scrubbing a toilet she was close to her due date and he didn't want her doing anything that was hard on her back especially. They had agreed he could do those things while he was.

"Ziva," he sighed. "That's bad for your back."

"I do not care it needs to be cleaned," she explained.

"It's not gonna get much cleaner, the house is spotless."

"Are you complaining?"

"No, I'm just saying there were some jobs we agreed were better for me to do, like this one."

"I needed to clean it."

"Ziva, relax, would you?"

He sighed, he'd heard about women so called nesting in the final stages of their pregnancies but he certainly had not expected his wife to turn into the energiser bunny of cleaning. She then put down the cloth she had in her hand, and went to the washer, and put a load of the baby's clothes into the dryer. He rolled his eyes not believing she had actually started to clean the baby clothes too. He knew that things needed to be done, but he was sure she had cleaned everything in the house.

"Do not give me that look the baby's clothes need to be cleaned with the baby detergent," she informed him as if he didn't already know.

"I know I'm just worried you're going to tire yourself out," he explained.

"I am fine Tony, you worry too much."

"Of course I worry, you're two weeks away from having a baby. Take a break."

He hated when she was hurt, the past few days after just a normal day she would complain about her back, which the doctors assured them was a normal part of the pregnancy. He knew the added cleaning was going to make things a lot worse that night. She tried to tell him she was fine but he knew better. He was dreading her going into labour because he knew that it meant he would have to see her in even more pain. She tried to reassure him that it was all right and all of it would be worth it for their daughter, but he still didn't like the idea of seeing her hurting.

"We need to be ready!" she snapped.

"We are as ready as we're going to be, there's just a few things to wash but we've got it all under control," he tried to assure her. "I'll help you fold the clothes later, and we can put in the sheets and get the crib set up, together, after we eat if you want."

"Fine," she sighed, knowing he wouldn't take no for answer. "I still think you worry too much."

"Humour me. That roast smells amazing by the way. I never thought in a millions years I'd be coming home to this."

She kissed him softly. "I hope you are not complaining."

He shook his head, and rested his hands on her stomach. "Nope, not complaining, I will never hear me whining about this it's too good. I just want you to take it easy while you can, just relax for me, please."

"I will try."

"She's not moving as much lately."

"It is normal she does not have as much space to move anymore. It means we are getting close to meeting her."

"I like the sound of that. Why don't you take it easy and I'll get dinner on the table?"

"Sure."

He took the roast out of the oven, not surprised she had also put in some potatoes, and carrots. He made them each a plate then went into the dining room with the plates. After they were done eating DiNozzo cleaned up and then they began to fold the laundry Ziva had put in earlier. It amazed him much clothing the unborn baby already had. Abby had gone crazy with the baby shower gifts, and he was sure that half the clothes had been from her. He had put in sheets in for the crib and when they were dry they went into what was going to be the baby's room. It was painted purple with a princess and the frog theme. The crib sheets were a light cream colour, and Breena had made her a purple quilt, with some patches with lily pads, and some with crowns.

"I hope she likes her room," Tony said.

"Once she is old enough to see it I know she will love it. She'll be even more surprised that her daddy was the one who painted that mural on her wall. I had no idea you could even draw more than a stick person."

One wall had a princess kissing the frog on it, which DiNozzo had drawn and painted after her had painted the rest of the room purple. Gibbs' purple baby blanket from her cradle had really inspired them, and they both liked how the room turned out, and especially liked that it could grow with her for a while rather than be fully baby themed which would have needed an upgrade when she graduated to a big girl bed, although at that point they weren't thinking about that point in her life. Mostly they wanted to meet her.

"I'm full of surprises," he told her, then kissed her softly.

"Yes, you are."

"Now we've got this done, it's time I help with the mess you made of your back today."

"I cannot argue with that."

They went into their room and she changed into her pajamas. He had gone into the bathroom first then she freshened up. He was sitting in their bed, she leaned in and kissed him softly. He wrapped his arms around her enjoying the embrace. When she pulled away she moved to sit front of him. He began to gently massage her back, and shoulders, hoping that it would help her feel better.

"You are so good to me Tony," she sighed as he worked out the kinks in her back.

"You're good for me too," he assured her. "Now let's get some sleep."

She nodded, and kissed him softly before curling up on her side of the bed. He moved to face her as they laid on the bed, running his fingers through her hair. She smiled at him, liking these quiet moments, happy to be a wife and soon to be mother; something she had never realised she wanted before, and was happy to have.

Notes: We meet the baby soon hehe... Please keep the reviews coming they mean so much to me.


	16. Part 15

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: The baby is late and Ziva's wanting to meet her already.

* * *

Ziva was a week past her due date, and couldn't wait for the baby to be born. If she didn't go into labour in the next four days the doctors were going to induce her, but for the time being she had to wait it out. She was getting sick of being pregnant, and she had almost no energy and could hardly sleep. She knew that it wouldn't get better once the baby was born. She was sitting on the couch and DiNozzo was massaging her feet, they were examining various ways they had heard which could make a woman go into labour.

DiNozzo sighed. "I'm not sure this is working, but I hope I made your feet feel little better."

"My feet have not felt this good in a long time," she assured him.

"I'm glad. How about we pause on this and I'll start dinner."

"That sounds good I am getting hungry."

He went into the kitchen, and began to make French toast, since he could usually cook breakfast foods without screwing them up by making it wrong or burning it. In the past few weeks he had been making breakfast for dinner more often because of Ziva's fatigue, which the doctors assured them was perfectly normal in the last stages of the pregnancy. When he was done cooking their meal they sat down together in the dining room.

"This is good," Ziva told him as she took a bite.

"Thanks, I figured I should just keep up with making breakfast foods when I cook."

"You are very good at that. I accepted that I am married to one of the few Italian men who does not have cooking in his genes."

He grinned at her. "My dad was more interested in passing me down charm."

She laughed at him. "I cannot argue with that."

"I think once it warms up we should get a barbeque as well, I can work a grill pretty well."

"I am okay with that. I do like barbeque so long as it is not burnt. I have known a few men who think that that is the way to grill."

"I'm not one of those guys."

They continued eating their French toast, then went into the living room to relax. He began to massage her shoulders, and back since that had been bothering for weeks already. She sighed happily as he gave her the massage, she had no idea he knew how to do that before, but was glad to learn he had some skills when it came to helping her to relax. All the way through her pregnancy he would massage her shoulders, or back and even her feet and normally she wouldn't even have to ask. It was as if he knew when she was achy and he just wanted to help her to feel better.

"I made another list of names," he told her.

"I want to wait until we meet her before we choose a name," she replied. "I think we will know what will suit her the moment we meet her."

"All right Ziva, if that's what you want I'm good with that."

They had been having a lot of trouble picking a name for their daughter, because Ziva didn't want their daughter to share a name with any woman her husband had been with in the past. They were also trying to avoid names that they had heard while they'd been working. DiNozzo wanted the baby to have and Israeli or Hebrew name, but Ziva wasn't sure she wanted her to have that with an Italian last name. They had discussed names many times, and their friends were bugging them that they wanted to know what they should be calling who Abby referred to as mini-Ziva.

She yawned. "I hope I will be able to sleep tonight."

"Me too, you need some rest before she gets here."

He helped her up from the couch, since it had been harder and harder to stand up as the pregnancy wore on. Ziva would often complain about all the weight she gained, and way she wiggled while she walked, but DiNozzo assured her, many times, that he still found her attractive. He even told her found something very sexy in the way she walked since about the half-way point in the pregnancy.

They both got ready for bed quickly. Much to her surprise Ziva had actually fallen asleep fairly quickly. She was awoken a few hours later when she felt a sharp pain in her stomach. She groaned, it didn't feel like anything else she'd experienced through her pregnancy. She didn't want to ignore it but she didn't want to worry her husband if she didn't have to. She stood up and walked into the kitchen when she felt a bizarre sensation and another sharp pain in her stomach. She was sure her water had broken. She went back into the bedroom.

"Tony," she whispered.

"Ziva, I'm not a machine," he mumbled sleepily.

She hated when she would have to wake him up, he was barely coherent and often said odd things to her. She knew that it would only get worse when he was getting woken up several times nightly by a newborn, and hoped that the nighttime needs of their daughter would not end up solely on her shoulders. She couldn't believe he was using that as an excuse at this stage of her pregnancy, she hadn't been in the mood for a few weeks now.

She rolled her eyes. "I am in no mood for _that_."

He rolled over, wanting to go back to sleep, he'd been having a great dream. "Then why are you waking me up?"

"It is time."

"Uh, time for what?" he was still not fully awake.

"The baby, Tony!" she growled. "Get up! We need to go to the hospital!"

"Oh shit!"

He jumped out of the bed and started to search for his clothes, pulling on the first pair of pants and shirt that he could find. She had also gotten changed out of her pajamas and was ready to get out the door. He was glad they had packed a bag for her weeks ago, and he took it out of the closet and slung it over his shoulder, and then left the house. She got into their car, and winced feeling yet another sharp pain. It didn't take them long to the hospital, and when they got there he began to fill out the paper work as the doctors brought her into the maternity ward. Only then did it hit DiNozzo that he was going to be meeting his daughter, hopefully soon. He wasn't sure how he would deal with seeing her in pain if she was in labour for a prolonged period of time, he was still wrapping his brain around the fact she was already starting to hurt.

Notes: I hope you liked this, again baby stuff freaks me out so she'll arrive in the next part. Let me know what you think :D


	17. Part 16

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: Yay! The baby arrives! Someone called me out on the names thing. I hadn't actually seen the Micheal Rivkin stuff when I named Michaela I just really like the name. And the EJ thing was a duh moment on my part. So sorry for being a bit of a tool.

* * *

After ten long hours in labour Ziva finally heard the doctor tell her one more push should do it. After finding all the strength she knew she possessed she heard the first cries of her daughter's life. Everything was worth it once she heard those cries. She was finally there and she couldn't wait to hold her. She didn't have to see the baby to know that she loved her more than anything else in the world.

She fell against the pillows on the bed, exhausted but thrilled she was officially a mother. She looked over at Tony who was staring at the newborn in awe, as he cut the umbilical cord. She had never seen him look like that and she knew it was because he felt as strongly about becoming a father. She knew he was still overwhelmed but he was also happy.

A moment later the doctor laid the baby on her chest, and Tony snapped a picture, much to her chagrin. She knew at some point she would see it as a precious memory but all she could think in that moment was that she likely looked awful. He took another picture, this one she could tell would not have her face in it, and she saw him press a few buttons, clearly sending their daughter's first picture to all the people they loved.

"Happy birthday," Ziva whispered to her daughter.

"She's perfect," Tony marveled.

A few minutes later the doctors picked her up. "We just need to weigh her and run a few tests. We'll

bring her right back. Does she have a name?"

"Not yet," Ziva replied.

Tony sighed. "We really need to agree on something."

She nodded. "I thought I would know when I saw her, but I still do not know."

"I sent everyone a picture and they want to know what they should call her too."

"I know, she cannot be called baby girl DiNozzo for her whole life."

"I still think she should have something Hebrew in her name, your faith means more to you than me."

"I guess you are right, but I can't think of anything I like."

"Are you sure you're totally against Michaela after your mother? I've always liked the name."

"Michaela Jane DiNozzo?"

DiNozzo was a little surprised that she had chosen his mother's as her middle name, but he liked how it sounded. The name had a lot of history to it, and he had always wanted that. He also knew that they would eventually tell their daughter about the two strong women she had been named for, who had sadly been taken from their families much before their time.

He nodded. "I think it's good, and has a lot of her past which we want her to know about."

"All right, so long as we do not name a son if we have one Anthony DiNozzo the third."

"I can agree to that," he assured her.

The doctor came back into the room with the now swaddled baby and gave her to Ziva. Tony took another picture, as she smiled down at the newborn. He wanted to get as many pictures of them as he could. There was a part of him that still didn't believe he was actually a father. His mind was racing wondering if he was going to be good enough.

"She passed all of her preliminary tests, and she's a healthy six pounds seven ounces and eighteen inches long," the nurse who brought her in told them smiling.

"You're a natural," Tony told her. "You look so happy."

"I am very happy, Tony. She's finally here, and she's beautiful. Would you like to hold her?" Ziva asked.

"Sure," he replied nervously.

He hadn't been around babies that much and he was worried he would do something wrong. She smiled at him reassuringly and placed the baby in his arms. He kept his arms rigidly straight as he stared at his daughter, stunned. His heart melted and all the doubts and fears he might have had seemed to float away. He knew he still had things to learn but he was sure that he could figure it all out after all he had the right motivation and teacher.

He knew the second he looked at the newborn he would do anything to make his daughter happy. It was Ziva's turn to snap a picture with DiNozzo's phone and send it to their friends, along with the long anticipated name they had finally agreed to give her. Ziva had never seen him so mesmerised before and seeing that made everything she'd been through to get there worth it. She was trying to hold back tears she was so happy.

"I can't believe I had any part of making something so amazing and perfect," he told her.

There were tears in her eyes. "Tony," she whispered.

"Michaela I have never loved anything the way I love you, just bare with me, this is all new to me." He rocked her gently in his arms. "It's okay to go back to sleep angel."

Ziva wiped her tears away, she was overwhelmed by how gentle and sweet DiNozzo was being with the newborn. She didn't care that he saw her like that, because she could tell he was fighting his own tears, although he still insisted that DiNozzo men didn't cry. She had hoped that that the baby girl would make him melt, but actually seeing with her hormones all over the place was almost too much for her.

"Hey are you okay?" he asked after her carefully laid the baby down.

"I think my emotions are getting the better of me, it is likely from the pregnancy," she told him. "You looked so happy holding her Tony, it made me happy that you are so real with her."

"I'm happier than I've ever been," he assured her then leaned in to kiss her. "I can't believe you did what you just did Ziva."

She smiled at him. "It is perfectly natural Tony. She is asleep?"

"Yeah." He then ran his fingers along her cheek, then kissed her softly. "I can't believe she's here, and she's ours."

She laughed. "You knew this was coming."

"It was all abstract 'til I saw her and now it all hit me. I'm someone's father, what if I screw up?"

"We will make mistakes Tony, but I know we can do this, if I did not believe that I would not have come home."

He kissed her cheek. "I needed to hear that."

The couple enjoyed a moment to themselves. They knew it wouldn't be long before everyone started to show up to meet the newest member of the NCIS family. She kept glancing over at the bassinette the baby was currently sleeping in, glad that it was see through so that she could be sure that the baby was still there. She hadn't had a lot of friends who had had babies and wasn't sure if what she was feeling was normal, but at that moment she didn't care. She just wanted to experience everything that came with being a new Mom.

Notes: So that was that. I hope you enjoyed it, starting to wrap things up in the next few parts. Let me know what 'ya think. Heart.


	18. Part 17

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: The team meets the baby!

* * *

Neither DiNozzo nor Ziva were surprised that Abby was the first person to knock on the door to the hospital room in order to meet the new addition, and she had brought McGee along with her. She went over and hugged Ziva, then hugged DiNozzo. She was thrilled she would finally be meeting her niece. McGee was holding a gift bag in his hand, which he gave to Ziva.

"From both of us," he told her.

Ziva smiled and took the bag from him, surprised it was so heavy. She had expected them to buy the newborn clothes or toys, but smiled when she saw that they had bought a bunch of books. She wasn't sure if she had read any of them but DiNozzo was looking at the titles, and couldn't believe the ones they had chosen those titles.

"Well McSneaky and goth company, you two have been doing some digging, those were my favourite books when I was growing up," DiNozzo told his friends as he looked at the titles. "How did you know?"

"You'd be surprised what your father remembers about little Tony," Abby told him as she looked down at the baby in the bassinette. "Is she sleeping?"

"No, she just hasn't opened her eyes yet. She's moving around which means she's awake you can hold her if you want," DiNozzo assured her.

"Of course I do, Tony!" Abby happily picked up the baby. "She's so tiny, wow she looks just like you Ziva." She then touched the baby's nose. "Which is a good thing, sweetie, cause I don't think the DiNozzo genes would look so good on a little girl."

Ziva smiled. "I think she will have some of Tony in her."

"Hopefully not his sense of humour," McGee chimed in.

"You're just jealous Uncle Probie."

Ziva cringed hearing DiNozzo say that. She knew that their NCIS family would become like surrogate family to their daughter as well and she liked the idea. Abby had been calling herself an aunt almost since she found out about the baby. She wasn't sure if McGee wanted to be an like uncle to the baby, but her daughter was not going to start calling him Uncle Probie, even if DiNozzo thought it was funny.

"I do not think so," Ziva warned her husband.

"All right fine," sighed Tony.

"But I get to be Auntie Abby right?" Abby asked hopefully.

"Of course you do," Ziva assured her.

"Auntie Abby and Uncle Timmy, it's perfect!"

McGee groaned. "I'm not going to talk you out of that am?"

Abby shook her head. "Nope, McGee, it's better than Uncle Probie."

"Not by much."

The door opened again, revealing Gibbs standing there. He had a bouquet of flowers in one hand and a small purple rabbit stuffed toy in the other. He had gotten a smaller toy because that way the baby could get her little hands around it quicker. He handed the flowers to Ziva with one of his typical half smiles.

"She have a name yet?" he asked.

"Michaela, Boss," DiNozzo replied.

Gibbs nodded looked at the newborn and set the toy down in her bassinette for her when she was laid back down. Abby looked thrilled to have her in her arms. He smiled at the baby, and Abby put her in his arms. He kissed Abby's cheek, silently thanking her glad he had gotten a chance to hold the newborn before she fell asleep again. He rocked the baby gently in his arms and she gooed softly, clearly happy.

"She looks like you Ziver," Gibbs told her.

"That is what everyone has said."

"Isn't she the sweetest thing, Grampa Gibbs?" Abby asked, grinning, and fixing the blanket that was coming loose.

"She is but no Abs, no way," sighed Gibbs.

"If McGee and I are Uncle Timmy and Auntie Abby it only makes sense that you'd be Grampa Gibbs."

"She might be brilliant, but don't listen to her all right Michaela?" He shook his head, smiling despite himself. "Grampa Gibbs I don't think so."

"It's got a certain ring to it, Boss," DiNozzo assured him.

"Do not encourage this, she's got a grampa already."

"I feel like Senior will be even more opposed to the grampa label than you, he'll tell me it makes him feel old, and will throw him off his game."

Gibbs nodded. "True, but he is actually a grandfather. I'm happy she's here but I don't like the idea of being called Grampa Gibbs." He then handed her to Ziva. "She's gonna need to eat, McGee help me get coffee for everyone."

"Uh- sure Boss."

No sooner did they leave the room than the baby started to cry. Abby, DiNozzo and Ziva all looked at each other quizzically, wondering how Gibbs had managed to have done that. They often wondered how Gibbs could predict things, but this was more than unusual than usual. Ziva first checked to make sure the newborn didn't need her diaper changed, sure enough Gibbs had been right.

"Did you read the stuff I sent you on nursing?" Abby asked.

"I did, and it makes sense," Ziva replied, then began to nurse the baby.

"Oh don't pout Tony, that's what they're there for not for your enjoyment," Abby joked.

DiNozzo shrugged. "I know that Abs."

When Ziva was done feeding the baby she burped her. "Tony she's getting tired, can you lay her down?"

"Sure," he assured her.

He carefully lifted the baby into his arms, a goofy grin spreading across his face as he did. "I've got you Michaela, don't worry," he whispered.

Both Abby and Ziva smiled at each other when they heard that. They had both hoped they would get to see this; the newborn already had her father in the palm of her hand. Despite the fact he had never been around kids before he was doing really well with her. He laid her down but she began to whimper softly. He picked her up again, but she began to cry harder. He checked her diaper and sure enough it was that. He laid the baby down on the bed and removed the dirty diaper. He then slid another one under the newborn, hoping she wouldn't move. He then closed the diaper carefully.

"Can I just?" Abby asked, adjusting the diaper around her belly button. "Just till what's left of the umbilical cord dries out, but you did it Tony!"

"All right, thank you. Now, little one no more fighting it, you need to sleep."

He had once again wrapped the blanket around the newborn to swaddle her, and laid her down in the bassinette. This time the baby didn't fuss, and was asleep within a few minutes. Gibbs and McGee came back in a little while later with coffee, tea and caf-pows. There was another knock on the door, and Ducky came in to meet the baby, with a new soft blanket for her, explaining that Palmer had a cold and decided it would be best to meet the baby when he was feeling better.

Notes: Well that was that, I hope you liked it. Let me know. Wow we're getting close to the end eh?


	19. Part 18

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: Senior meets his granddaughter. Wow just the epilogue left tomorrow... jinkies, how did that happen?

* * *

Anthony DiNozzo Senior was the last person to arrive to meet Michaela. He was excited to be meeting his granddaughter, and was surprised to find Ziva alone in the room when he arrived. DiNozzo was out getting dinner for himself and Ziva. Gibbs had taken everyone else out to dinner wanting to give the new family some time together. He was glad that she wasn't sleeping when he came in. He had also brought Ziva a bouquet of flower which he presented to her. For his granddaughter he'd brought an average sized teddy bear, which was in a bag which he put down waiting to give the baby the toy.

"You look amazing, Ziva," he said as he went into the room, and kissed her cheek.

"Thank you Mister DiNozzo. I think Michaela is napping right now."

"I can wait. I've always liked that name."

"It was my mother's."

He smiled. "I'm glad she has something with a little bit of history."

"Her middle name is Jane for her other grandmother."

"Wow."

He went over to where the baby was sleeping in the bassinette needing a distraction and he smiled when he saw her. He couldn't believe he really had a grandchild. As much as he thought his son might finally figure out that he was in love with Ziva he was sure they would never have kids. She just didn't strike him as the mother type, but she certainly seemed happy about it. He wanted to pick up the baby, but knew better, the last thing he wanted was for his first memory of his granddaughter be upsetting her.

"She looks just like you, thankfully," he told her. "DiNozzo genes don't always look as good on the ladies."

Ziva laughed. "That seems to be the consensus."

"But I think she's going to have Junior's eyes."

The baby had just opened her eyes, but Senior was still nervous about picking her up. He couldn't get over how much she looked like Ziva. He was also amazed by her eyes, they looked just like his son's had when he'd first opened them as a baby. He gently rubbed the newborn's cheek and she made small almost squeak like sound when he did.

"It is possible, I hope she will have some of Tony in her. She's awake? If she is you can hold her if you want to."

"Yeah, she's just laying there staring at me. Probably wonder who this guy that looks a little like her daddy is." He bent down to pick up the baby carefully. "Well hello there little lady, I'm your grandfather."

The door opened and DiNozzo came in with dinner for them both, he'd gotten pasta from one of his favourite restaurants. He was glad to see his father had arrived but he was also hungry and wasn't sure how much longer he could hold off on dinner, and was sure Ziva was in a similar situation. He took one of the containers out of the bag he was holding and giving it to her. He looked over at his father and daughter, grinning, hoping he would continue to show up on time for her major life events.

"Dad! You made it. I hope your flight was all right," said DiNozzo.

"It was good. Did you think I would miss meeting my first granddaughter? She's as beautiful as her mom you're a lucky man Junior."

Tony grinned. "I am," he agreed. "I hope you don't mind that we're about to eat."

"That's fine, kids, it gives me some time with Michaela. You're an angel little one. I'm so glad you're here."

He bent over and took the teddy bear out of the bag, and put it next to the other, smaller, stuffed toy which was in with the baby. Both Ziva and DiNozzo were trying not to devour their dinner but it was hard neither of them had eaten in hours. Part way through the meal the baby started to cry. The senior DiNozzo checked the newborn's diaper.

"She got a bottle around here?" Senior asked.

The junior DiNozzo shook his head. "Right now that's up to Ziva."

"Gotcha, I'm gonna hit the head in the meantime."

Senior gave the baby to her mother and left the room before he saw anything. She was glad that the men in her life were bashful. As much as it was natural she would rather them not see anything. After the baby was done she burped her. Just like earlier before the newborn would settle DiNozzo had to change her diaper. The senior DiNozzo came back a little while later and visited longer with his newborn granddaughter and family. DiNozzo had asked the team to give the family sometime, and was glad they had ageed.

After a very hectic day DiNozzo was glad to be alone with his wife and daughter. He went to go say something to Ziva but she'd fallen asleep. He smiled at her, he knew she needed the rest. He went over to where his daughter was laying, assuming she was asleep too, but instead she was staring up at him. He very carefully picked her up, hoping that she wouldn't start crying when he did. Instead she made a happy sounding going noise.

"Hi," he whispered. "I know you met a lot of people today, there's a lot of people who love you Michaela. You're very lucky to have so many people who are family to you. I'm your dad in case you forgot. I haven't been around babies very much so I'm still learning what I'm doing but I want to be a good dad for you." He sighed softly. "My dad didn't teach me lot of what I needed to learn, but I'm going to make sure he's better for you. So just bear with me little lady and eventually I'll figure it out."

The baby stared up at him for a few minutes more minutes before he noticed she was falling asleep again. He laid her down again and softly kissed her cheek. She made another happy sounding noise when he did that.

"I love you little angel," he whispered.

He then sat down in the chair that was in corner of the room, and although his mind was still reeling about how he would do as her father he fell asleep on the chair. A nurse came in a few minutes later an smiled seeing the scene that was in front of her the new family seemed very comfortable. On the ward they usually decided case by case if the father could stay, since this one was asleep she decided it would be fine for him to stay since he wasn't interfering. She soon left the room to continue her rounds.

Notes: I hope you liked it let me know! Up next the epilogue...


	20. Epilogue

Title: Hard to Find  
Rating: T (same as the show to be safe)  
Disclaimer: I am poor barista who has been on a leave of absence for months. I am not making money off this just curing boredom. NCIS still belongs to its network, creator, writers, actors, actresses and countless other not me people who bring it to life weekly.  
Summary: It took too long for Ziva and Tony to show they had feelings for each other. Who said a kiss is all they shared in Israel? Starts with the birth of their son, and goes back to show how they got there.  
Notes: It's Michaela's first birthday. Wow I can't believe this is it...

* * *

DiNozzo and Ziva were working on the last few things they needed to get done for their daughter's first birthday party. They were excited to be celebrating with their friends and family later. They had had a small celebration at the playgroup the Ziva took her daughter to earlier in the week so it was just going to the team and DiNozzo's father. Ziva was icing the cake when they heard the baby start to cry in the baby monitor.

"I'll go get her," DiNozzo assured her.

"Thank you."

"That cake looks amazing by the way." He kissed her cheek and went upstairs.

When he got into Michaela's room the baby was using the rails of her crib to stand herself up, and was bouncing up and down on the mattress. He smiled at her, still not believing how quickly she was growing. The baby smiled at him and held up her arms to him and he picked her up. It amazed him how much he enjoyed doing this. She giggled happy to be in her father's arms.

"Well aren't you bright eyes and bushy tailed, Princess, I hope you still are when everyone gets here for your birthday party. Let's get you in a clean diaper and the dress Auntie Abby bought for you."

He laid the baby down on the change table, and quickly changed her diaper. Like Gibbs had assured him more than a year ago he'd been able to figure it out and as time went on her felt more and more confident in his abilities as a father. He then put the light purple dress Abby had gotten her on. It was long sleeved, and the skirt was like a tutu. He then put a pair of tights on the baby, and picked her up to bring her down the stairs.

He held her up in front of his face as he went into the kitchen, and said, "I'm ready Mommy."

Ziva laughed loving when he did things like that, it showed just how much he loved their daughter. "Abby is a pro at picking baby clothes. There is a bib on her high chair, can you feed her Tony?"

"Sure, you better let me put some of your food in your mouth today, Princess. We don't want to get your dress dirty before everyone arrives."

Ziva laughed, she loved that DiNozzo would always talk to the baby. He said he'd read somewhere that speaking while doing routine things helped with language skills later in her life. She looked over at them and he was making airplane sounds as he brought the spoon to her mouth. She was giggling excitedly but she was also eating for her father.

"You spoil her," Ziva laughed.

"She's my little princess, if this makes her happy I'm going to do it," he explained. "Besides it's her birthday, she deserves to get a little spoiled."

"How can I argue with that?"

He was just about to open a jar of strawberries for her to have a dessert, when the doorbell rang. He left the baby in her high chair but made sure that jars were out of her reach. He'd made that mistake before and he wasn't about to do it again. He went to let their first visitor in, not at all surprised to see Abby standing in the doorway.

"I know I'm early, but I'm so excited! I want see Michaela and if you're not really ready yet I'll even help out with anything you need!" Abby explained.

DiNozzo smiled. "It's fine Abby, come on in. You can give Michaela her dessert if you want."

"Great!" she exclaimed, as they walked through the house. "Hi Ziva!"

"Hello Abby," Ziva greeted.

"Oh wow that cake is amazing! I bet Michaela will love it!"

She smiled. "Thank you." Michaela was in her high chair squealing excitedly. "You might want to say hi to your niece, I think she missed you."

She went over and sat down in the chair DiNozzo had set up. "I missed her too mini-Ziva. Your daddy told me I get to feed you dessert. Looks like strawberries, yummy! And later you get to have a real dessert and try that yummy looking cake your mommy made."

Ziva smiled glad that the cake was done. She watched Abby with Michaela and couldn't believe how lucky she was. DiNozzo came over and wrapped his arms around her waist then kissed her softly when she looked up at him. She was glad for a moment to relax before everyone started to arrive. The doorbell rang again, and this time Ziva answered, and was happily surprised to see Senior standing there.

"Come in," she told him. "Abby's just feeding her."

He looked around the house at the decorations. "You kids went all out!"

"Michaela only has one first birthday."

"She's going to have on heck of a good memory to look back on."

He went into kitchen and Abby looked up and smiled at him. "Mister D! Look Michaela your Grampa's here!"

He chuckled, "good to see you too Abby. Grampa, huh I'm not sure I'm ever going to get used to that title."

"Just wait 'til she uses it the first time and I bet it won't bother you nearly as much."

It wasn't long before McGee, Gibbs, Ducky, Palmer and Breena arrived as well. Michaela was in a great mood, loving the attention she was getting from everyone in her extended family of sorts. She didn't fully understand what was going on when Ziva helped her to open her gifts. She had gotten toys, clothes, books as well as handmade rocking horse from Gibbs who explained he didn't like plastic toys, and Ziva and DiNozzo knew that would mean that she would continue to get these hand crafted gifts from him. They appreciated the thoughtful gifts but wondered how much time Gibbs took to make them.

After they were done with the gifts everyone ate. When it was time for the cake Michaela was getting tired, so they sang her happy birthday but didn't fuss too much over the candle before they gave her a piece of cake, which she mostly just squished with her hands and giggled about it. She fussed a little bit when Ziva washed her hands.

After everyone left Ziva brought the baby up to her room. She changed her diaper and changed her into a pair of warm footed pajamas. As she was laying her down DiNozzo came into the room. No sooner had the baby been laid down did she fall asleep. DiNozzo then pulled his wife into his arms, and kissed her softly. She relaxed into the embrace for a long moment, then rested her head on his chest smiling.

"I love you," he whispered.

"And I love you," she replied.

"Today was perfect."

She kissed him softly. "Thank you. How about we start working on a sibling for her?"

"I like the way you think."

They went into their own room, and she kissed him softly. There were still times she thought she was dreaming the life she now lived. It was so far from who she had been when they first met, but she couldn't be happier. She liked having her days filled with small tasks and various activities with her daughter. She enjoyed being a wife and mother, and she knew she wanted at least one more child to complete her family. DiNozzo was also amazed that this was how things had turned out with her. There was a point where he thought he'd lost her, but someone had something else in mind for them. It still amazed him that his wife was happy with her new life after all she had done before. He knew that one day his daughter would be shocked to learn that her mother had worked with him, and the rest of the people she would consider her family. The couple moved toward the bed, their lips all over each other, not sure how they had any energy left. His hands slid down to her hips and she moaned happily knowing exactly how this day was going to end.

The End

Notes: So that was that. Thank you to everyone who took time to review, favourite and alert this. It really does mean a lot to me. The reviews have gotten me through some long work days. HUGZ and heats to everyone I'm glad you seemed to enjoy -trista aka dustytiger


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